Bakugan Smashers
by chaohacker
Summary: A few characters from SSBB have been transported to Earth, where they meet the Bakugan Battle Brawlers and their Bakugan as they search for a way to retrieve the Chaos Emeralds in the center of Vestroia! Disclaimer is at the end of the story! Epilogue up!
1. Prologue: Part 1

Smashers unite! The characters from Melee have returned to join the Brawl characters on many adventures where they've made new friends. However, this next adventure will take them to a world of a different kind of Brawlers… What will they find? Who will they meet? The answer is in this sure to be amazing story.

Day 1

"Near the planet Earth,

there exists another parallel universe besides this one.

This parallel universe is filled with magnificent beasts that only one person is said to have seen."

These were the few words that Tails had read at the Great Nintendo/Sega Library. Tails was doing some voluntary research to keep himself occupied. Meanwhile, outside, Sonic was chowing down on 30 chili dogs.

"Sheesh! If you-a keep eating like-a dat, you'll get as-a plumpy as-a me-a!" said Mario.

"I have a much higher metabolism than you, fatso. Plus, I move at the speed of sound, so I burn off calories no problem," replied Sonic. Mario didn't like him calling him 'fatso'.

"Shut up. Anyway, how-a come you-a never put any condiments on-a dem? If I-a were you, I'd put a little sauerkraut and relish on that puppy," offered Mario.

"I would, but I'm allergic to vinegar, which rules out mustard and relish. I'm allergic to lactic acid, so I can't eat sauerkraut. I'm also allergic to tomatoes and any kind of pepper, so I can't put ketchup or hot sauce on hot dogs either. Besides, it's not so bad this way. I've grown fond of eating them like this," Sonic explained.

"Man. What a bummer. Anyway, where's Tails?"

"In the library. He's grown interested in mythology. Especially this weirdo place called Vestroia."

"Vestroia?! What kind of name of a place is dat?!"

"It's said to some huge place full of elemental monsters, yadda, yadda, yadda. I didn't pay much attention to Tails' yakking."

"I see. Looks like Tails is still hitting the books."

"Yeah…" sighed Sonic. Tails was up on the fifth floor of the library. The library itself had twenty floors, each of them dedicated to a certain kind of book. Each floor was 10000 square feet, containing over 100,000,000 books each, making it the largest collection of books ever. The fifth floor was for mythology. The section for Vestroia contained most of the books in the mythology floor.

"With all this information on Vestroia, how could it possibly be a myth at all?" pondered Tails.

"It's due to the fact that although there is a lot of info, no one has ever seen this place in person, except for the person who allegedly saw it with his own eyes," explained the librarian. People were allowed to talk in the library since many people did group projects there.

"Really? That's the only reason? Hmmm…" said Tails. "I wonder. I've read a lot about this place, but it never mentions anything about Vestroia itself. I wonder what's at the center of that universe."

"This book should help you. _History of the Elements_," offered the librarian. "It's the only book I've never seen you read."

"You think this has the answers? I'll take a look at 'em," said the two-tailed fox. Tails took the book to his study table and began to read. "Let's see…_History of the Elements_, page 1.

Page 1

Long ago, the universe of Vestroia was composed of six different worlds. Each world each had its own type of creatures. At the very center of Vestroia, two conflicting energies collided with each other and kept it in balance. These two energies, the cores of Vestroia, were known as Silence and Infinity. Once, only five years ago, a rouge creature known as Naga tried to absorb both of the cores to achieve ultimate power, but was tapped within the Silent core and caused Vestroia to go out of balance. Luckily, a group of kids managed to defeat Naga and return Vestroia to order. Since most of the worlds already fused, Vestroia just became one big world.

Page 2

The Bakugan have not returned to the human world, but there is always a chance that they will. If something happens in Vestroia, the Bakugan Battle Brawlers will step up to the plate!

THE END

"Wow! This is amazing! I never thought of two energies being the center! This will really help my research! Thanks!" cheered Tails.

"No problem, young one. Now run along and have some fun."

"Will do!" said Tails. He took off like a rocket outside toward Sonic.

"TAILS!!! What took you so long?! Hurry up!" Sonic shouted as he grabbed Tails' arm and ran.

"Ow! Ow! What's going on?" screamed Tails.

"Eggman just took off with the Chaos Emeralds! Again!" said Sonic.

"For crying out loud! When will he give up?"

"We're in pursuit right now. Eggman isn't far," said Sonic. Sonic let go of Tails' hand so he could Spin Dash. When they reached Eggman, he was laughing maniacally.

"Ha, ha, ha! You fools! You fell for my ingenious trap! Take this!" Eggman said as he pressed a button. A lot of Eggman robots popped up. They were charging their lasers.

"Attack!" yelled Marth. The group charged at Eggman's robots in a furious clash of metal and energy. Suddenly, a curious thing happened. The Chaos Emeralds were glowing!

"Wha… what's going on?!" everyone, including Eggman, shouted. Suddenly, a large rectangular, grey portal came out of nowhere.

"That's a portal to…Vestroia!" shouted Tails.

"Say what?!" said Sonic. Tails threw a camera at Sonic, telling him to take a snapshot of the portal. Sonic pressed the button. At the same time, the Chaos Emeralds went into the portal! The portal started to become a vacuum. It tried to suck everyone in! Eggman and Tails burrowed underground to escape the gale force winds. Suddenly, Mario, Bowser, Sonic, Link, Ganondorf, Samus, R.O.B., Kirby, Pikachu, Mewtwo, Lucario, Captain Falcon, Meta Knight, and King Dedede were sucked in!

**What will become of the 14 characters that were sucked inside the portal? How long will they be gone? And what caused that portal to open, anyway? Stay tuned for the next chapter to find out!**


	2. Prolouge: Part 2

**In the last chapter, some of the SSBB characters were sucked through a portal that apparently led to Vestroia. How did that portal open? This chapter will explain it all.**

It has been 5 years since Dan and the Bakugan Battle Brawlers said goodbye to their Bakugan. Dan and Runo have been dating for quite some time. Marucho has been helping his parents and wandering around. Julie has been hanging with her friend Billy in Bakugan Valley. Alice's grandfather has moved to Dan's town. Shun's mother has recovered, and Shun's grandfather has moved to their new apartment. Chan-Lee and Joe have been hanging together as well. Komba, Julio, and Klaus have been just laying back. All of the people in the world who played Bakugan have missed their friends, but soon that's going to change…

It was a pleasant summer day in Dan's hometown of Wardington. He was looking out the window, when he heard his mom calling to him.

"Dan! It's time to get up now!" shouted Mrs. Kuso.

"I've been up, Mom!" Dan yelled back. "Better see if all the others are online." He said as he logged on to the Bakugan website. It stated that only Joe, Runo, Marucho, and Shun were online.

"Hey, Dan! Nice to see ya!" said Joe. Joe was still the webmaster of the Bakugan chat room.

"Hey, Joe! What's happening?" said Dan. "Why isn't anyone else on?"

"You mean you didn't know?" asked Runo.

"Know what?" asked Dan.

"Today's the Bakugan Remembrance Day! Duh!" said Marucho.

"Oh my gosh! I totally forgot!" exclaimed Dan. "Where's it being held this year?"

"It's at the park, here in Wardington! Everyone but you is there! Hurry on over!" said Shun.

"I'm on my way!" said Dan. He rushed over to the park. Every single Bakugan player was near the statue of Drago. Dan went over to the statue.

"That Drago was quite a hero five years ago," said Takashi.

"Yeah. So was that Wayvern," said Christopher.

"She was. I sure do miss her. It's sad that she sacrificed herself to help Drago," said Joe solemnly.

"I wonder how Drago is doing in Vestroia?" said Dan. All of a sudden, a huge rainbow colored energy wave appeared out of the sky!

"Huh?!" shouted all of the kids. Suddenly, a giant red Dragonoid came falling out of the portal! It managed to turn and saw Dan.

"Daniel!" shouted the dragon.

"Drago?! It's impossible!" shouted Dan.

"Look out!" shouted a nasal like voice. It was a giant lizard like creature. Along with it came a being that kept flipping and changing appearance.

"Preyas! Angelo! Diablo!" screamed Marucho.

"M'lady! Incoming!" shouted a Haos Blade Tigrerra. Runo looked up and saw it.

"Tigrerra! I'll catch you!" said Runo. Storm Skyress fell out as well.

"Skyress!" shouted Shun.

"Whoa!" shouted a deep voice. It was Julie's Bakugan, Subterra Hammer Gorem.

"Gorem! Is that you?" said Julie happily.

"Help!!" shouted a three headed black dragon.

"That voice… Alpha Hydranoid! I'm coming!" assured Alice. The Brawlers Bakugan were tumbling down at breakneck speed! Suddenly, the eight Bakugan regained their trajectory and headed for a cotton bed the people had laid out. All of them landed on it safely.

"Ahhhhh. Comfy landing," sighed Preyas.

"This is amazing! The Bakugan are back!" shouted the other Brawlers.

"Why are we not in our sphere forms?" pondered Drago.

"Who cares? You're back, buddy!" shouted a crying Dan. Dan hugged the neck of the huge Dragonoid.

"I see you're still in your ultimate form! Cool!" said Marucho.

"We need to try and turn into our sphere forms. We may cause too much damage in our normal forms," said Angelo Preyas. He changed into Diablo

"Why should we? It's fun to cause mischief!" argued Diablo.

"Hush up!" said Blade Tigrerra. The Bakugan concentrated and turned into their sphere forms. Diablo Preyas caused Angelo and him to turn back to normal.

"Why you!" said Angelo. Angelo raised his foot up and flipped, turning into Diablo. Diablo couldn't stop, so he ended up kicking himself in the groin.

"Yow! That hurt!" shouted Diablo. He turned back to Angelo.

"Serves you right!" said Angelo. He turned into the sphere form and got on Marucho's shoulder.

"Hey! Do you know what this means? You can change your forms at will!" said Dan.

"This is so cool! We're the Bakugan Battle Brawlers again!" shouted Julie.

"So, what's happening now?" asked Dan.

"Somehow, the core ejected me, turned into the Infinity Core and Silent Core, and became unstable! Vestroia's boundaries are growing out of control! Something has to be done before the unbalance spreads to a lot more worlds!" said Drago. Another wave of energy activated, and more Bakugan appeared. A red giant, a blue lady with a harp, a giant white eyeball, a harpy, and a brown cyclops fell out of the portal simultaneously.

"Fortress!" screamed Chan-Lee.

"Sirenoid!" said Klaus.

"Tentaclear!" exclaimed Julio.

"Cycloid!" shouted Billy.

"Harpus!" gasped Komba. The five Bakugan turned into their ball forms. The five top players ran after their Bakugan. They caught each of them and returned to the others. Suddenly, white sparkles appeared out of nowhere and came together in Joe's hand. The sparkles formed a white ball. When the glowing stopped, it was Wayvern!

"J… J… Joe?" said a groggy Wayvern.

"W… Wayvern? Is… is that you?!" asked a surprised Joe.

"Where am I?" asked a confused Wayvern.

"You're on Earth. Somehow, you've been brought back to life!" said Joe.

"It must be from the fact that the over reactive Infinity Core has restored Wayvern," said Drago.

"Dragoroonie!" said Wayvern.

"Aw, man!" groaned Drago.

"Aw, you. So, how've you been?" Wayvern asked.

"Okay, I guess," muttered Drago.

"Ho, ho, ho. If it isn't lover boy's little girlfriend," said Diablo.

"Shut up, Diablo!" roared Drago.

"Can we please focus here?" said Dan. "So, Drago, what would happen if we managed to restore the cores to normal?"

"Since we won't be able to alter the effects, I believe it will stay the way it is right before the cores are restored. Which means, we'd be here for a long time," said Drago.

"Whoo-hoo!" shouted a happy Dan. Slowly, all of the Bakugan were sent from Vestroia to Earth.

"Hey! Let's have a battle to celebrate!" said Joe. "Dan, my Wayvern against your Drago!"

"Sounds cool! And, since Vestroia has engulfed Earth, we don't need to activate the field!" said Dan.

********Start Battle********

"Gate Card, set!" they shouted.

"Bakugan, brawl! Drago, stand!" said Dan.

"Bakugan, brawl! Wayvern, stand!" said Joe. Both Bakugan landed on Dan's gate Card.

_**Both Bakugan at 550 Gs**_.

"Gate Card open! Character!" said Dan. Drago's power doubled.

"Ability Card activate! Big Bang Blaze!" said Joe.

_**Gate Card negated. Drago's power level back to 550 Gs. Wayvern still at normal power level.**_

"Oh yeah? Ability card activate! Ultimate Dragonoid!"

_**Drago power increase to 750 Gs. Wayvern now at 350 Gs.**_

"Drago, attack!" Drago unleashed a huge fireball that ended the battle. The Gate Cards went back to the others.

********End Battle********

"You beat me… Drago," said Wayvern.

"That was fun. It's been a while since I last battled," said Drago.

"Awesome! I still got it!" exclaimed Dan. Slowly, but surely, each Bakugan came to Earth to rejoin their previous partners. Christopher got his Aquos Juggernoid back.

"Now that we know Vestroia is expanding, portals might start opening in other dimensions besides this one," said Drago. Suddenly, after the rainbow portal closed, a light wave of white energy washed over the area.

"What was that?" Shun asked.

"It means that a portal has opened up somewhere else. It looks like we'll be getting some visitors," said Storm Skyress. The Brawlers looked up in suspense. They wondered what would appear.

**There you have it. The portal in Smash World was caused by the expansion of Vestroia. What will happen next? Be patient. The answer will come soon enough.**


	3. Entry to Earth

"WHOA! Whoooooaaa! WHOOOOAAA!" screamed Sonic as he and the others were tumbling behind the Chaos Emeralds.

"Where do you suppose we're going?" yelled Mario.

"If Tails' research is right, we should be heading for the center!" Sonic replied. Suddenly, they appeared in a black void with a yellow ball and a purple ball beside each other. The video camera's communicator button flashed. Sonic pressed the button. Tails' face appeared on the second screen.

"Hey! Sonic!" said Tails happily.

"Tails! Are you getting this?!" said Sonic.

"Yeah. You're in the center, like you thought. Look to your left or right. You should see Vestroia," said Tails. Sonic looked in all directions he could.

"I don't see anything."

"Trust me. It's right around you. You probably need to find a portal. It should take you either to the second part, or to Earth. Hey! I see the Chaos Emeralds! They're…between the two cores?!" said Tails.

"We're heading there right now," said Sonic. The Smashers headed right for the cores. Suddenly, a giant energy field appeared and zapped them!

"Aaaaauuugh!" yelled Sonic.

"Sonic! What's happening?"

"The cores are getting all shaky! It looks like they're in an over reactive state! Their immense power combined with the Chaos Emeralds is making a huge force field! Augh!" Sonic said. The Smashers were blown back into an opening portal. They disappeared inside. They suddenly found themselves in a huge sanctuary filled with fire, earth, light, darkness, water, and wind.

"This is Vestroia!" exclaimed Tails. "I'm feeding the information from the camera to every single person in the world. Good job, Sonic! The existence of Vestroia has been confirmed!"

"Yeah, but…"

"But what, Sonic?" asked Tails.

"For starters, we have no idea how to get the Chaos Emeralds. Secondly, as for your myth, we don't see any of these Bakugan," said Mario.

"Hey! Look over there! A strange demon-like creature!" said Link. The purple demon walked over.

"I am Darkus Reaper. What brings you to this part of Vestroia?!" the creature interrogated.

"We were sucked in to this realm by a portal," Kirby exclaimed.

"So, you aren't unusual Bakugan?" Reaper asked.

"No," said Samus.

"You say a portal to Vestroia opened? That's not good," it said.

"Why is that?" asked Tails from the video camera.

"As I'm sure you saw, the cores have become over reactive. The immense power overload is causing Vestroia to expand out of control. Already, a portal opened to Earth, and all of the Bakugan but I have gone there," said Reaper. "I managed to hold my ground. But now that I know it leads to Earth, I am on my way there now. Feel free to join me." The Reaper jumped though a rainbow disk.

Back on Earth…

"Hey! Something's coming! It's a Darkus Reaper!" said Marucho.

"It's nice to see you again, Alice. Do you remember me? You got rid of me when you were Masquerade," explained the creature. He turned into his ball form and went over to Alice.

"It's nice to see you too, Reaper," said Alice.

"Well, we should go to warm up our strategies since the Bakugan game is about to restart," said Joe. "We should be sure to greet these newcomers when we see them."

"Good idea. See you everybody!" said Dan. All of the Brawlers said goodbye and went home.

Back in Vestroia…

"What should we do?" said Pikachu.

"I don't think there's any other option. Into the portal!" said Bowser. All of the Smashers jumped. At the exit, they suddenly realized that they were falling into a forest! What they didn't notice was that cards suddenly appeared and scattered across the globe.

"Ow! Ow! Oof! Ouch!" said Sonic. They all landed with a thud.

"That was a doozy. Everybody okay?" asked Lucario. Everybody else nodded.

"So, where should we go?" said Sonic.

"No clue. Let's take a look around," said Meta Knight. They all started walking around. The Brawlers were walking on the opposite street. Dan turned and saw them.

"What the heck are those people doing? Why aren't their Bakugan in their ball forms? And what kind of Bakugan are they?" Dan said.

"I have no idea! They look like a new species," said Marucho. He was really interested.

"What are they saying?" Shun wondered. On the other side of the street, the Smashers were talking about their own problems.

"How are we supposed to get back to the center? If only those cores weren't over reactive…" said Captain Falcon.

"Did you guys hear that? They might have caused this!" said Julie.

"I'm going over there right now," said Dan. "Hey! What the heck are you guys up to?!" he hollered.

"Huh?" said Mewtwo.

"Alright, spill it! Why aren't you in your ball forms? Are you guys trying to scare everyone? Are you guys the ones behind the cores going out of control?!" Dan demanded.

"Whoa! Whoa there, bucko, calm down! Who the heck are you? And why are you mentioning something about ball forms? Have you got your screws loose?" said Link.

"You know what I mean!" said Dan.

"Unfortunately, we don't. We're just as confused as you guys," said Ganondorf.

"I have no idea what you guys mean by ball forms. As for the cores, they were the things that caused us to end up here!" said Sonic.

"Oh yeah? Well, why were you guys talking about going to the center of Vestroia?" asked Runo.

"It's kinda hard to explain. Let's just say…something of ours got caught between the two cores," said Lucario.

"Aha! I knew it! You guys ARE behind the cores going wild!" Dan concluded. "Well then, it's time you guys paid!" The Smashers were trembling. "Gate Card…set! Bakugan Brawl! Drago, stand!" Dan threw Drago onto the huge black platform and it grew to normal size.

"Aaaah! A huge red dragon thing! Run!" yelled Pikachu.

"What's wrong? Aren't you going to have your partners throw down their Gate Cards?"

"What da heck is a Gate Card?" asked a trembling Mario.

"Wait! Stop! They aren't evil Bakugan!" said Reaper.

"Reaper?" asked Alice.

"This friendly group was sucked into Vestroia by a portal. I was the last Bakugan to come out," Reaper said.

"Then who are they?" asked Shun. Dan returned his Gate Card.

"All of us are from the dimension known as Smash World," said Sonic. "My name is Sonic the Hedgehog.

"I am-a Mario!" said Mario

"Bowser's the name."

"I'm Link."

"The name's Ganondorf. You'd do well do remember it."

"I am Pikachu!"

"Lucario. It is an honor."

"I am the legendary Mewtwo."

"I am R.O.B."

"Samus."

"I'm the super tough pink puff, Kirby!"

"I'm Meta Knight. Kirby and I are rivals."

"I'm the supreme King Dedede!"

"I'm the bounty hunter, Captain Falcon."

"Hey! I know all of you! I have all your games! Wow. Who'd a thought? Real live video game characters! In our world!" said Dan. "Sorry about the misunderstanding. My name is Dan. And these are my friends, Runo, Marucho, Julie, Shun, and Alice. We're the Bakugan Battle Brawlers!"

"It's nice to meet you. Hey. Does anybody have some food?" said Kirby.

"Yeah! I have a liver kabob if you want one!" offered Runo.

"Eeeww! Liver!" said a disgusted Samus. Kirby opened his mouth and tried to inhale it.

"'Gasp'… 'gasp'… What's going on? I can't use my Inhale!" Kirby started to panic.

"It seems that you are temporarily unable to use your abilities," explained Drago.

"But…that means… I'll have to eat like a dog! I can't use my hands to eat! They're too stubby!" Kirby said.

"Then…that means…I can't use my sonic speed! Wa ha ha!" Sonic wailed. Sonic and Kirby were whining due to the loss of their abilities.

"Hey! I got an idea!" said Mario. He kicked Kirby in the butt. Kirby screamed and stated to inhale. He sucked up the liver kabob in two seconds.

"Whoa! That was fast." said Runo. He then kicked Sonic, and he zoomed off. He came back and thanked Mario.

"Hey! Look!" said Sonic. Shining disks appeared above the Smashers. Each character had five of them, but Kirby had four. The disks became card shaped. They landed in the Smashers' hands.

"What are these?" asked a confused Pikachu.

"They're Ability Cards. In battle, we cannot use our abilities on our own," said Drago.

"That's interesting. Hey! We never got your names!" said Lucario.

"Oh, right…" said a blushing Drago. "My name is Drago. I'm a Pyrus Ultimate Dragonoid."

"I am Haos Blade Tigrerra. Just call me Tigrerra."

"I am Aquos Preyas. I prefer to be called Preyas. These two are my brothers, Aquos Preyas Angelo and Aquos Preyas Diablo."

"Two? I only see-a one ball," said Mario.

"Angelo and Diablo are two unique Bakugan that share the same ball form," explained Tails.

"Who's that?" asked Dan.

"Oh, yeah, I forgot," Sonic said. He turned the screen with Tails toward the Brawlers.

"Hi there! My name's Tails!" Tails said excitedly.

"Nice to meet you! Boy, aren't you a cute two-tailed fox!" squealed Julie. Tails blushed.

"Back to the intros, please," Ganondorf said.

"Right. Like Preyas said, I am Aquos Preyas Angelo." Angelo said. Angelo flipped over.

"And I'm the rough and tough Aquos Preyas Diablo!" Diablo bragged.

"I am Subterra Hammer Gorem. Just call me Gorem."

"I am Ventus Storm Skyress, or Skyress if you prefer."

"I am Darkus Alpha Hydranoid. I prefer to be called Hydranoid."

"And you all already know me," Reaper said.

"How come you have two talking Bakugan?" Mario asked.

"You see, five years ago, a rogue Bakugan named Naga tried to absorb the two cores, but wound up inside the Silent Core. My grandfather, an esteemed scientist, was working on a dimensional transport system, when he was sucked into Vestroia by a portal, where he met Naga. Naga returned him to Earth, and six months had passed. During that time, Naga tried to absorb the two cores in Vestroia. He failed, and was absorbed by the Silent Core. The huge power imbalance caused negative energy to pour through his dimensional transport system. When I walked inside, we both were consumed by the negative energy. It caused him to turn into Hal-G, an evil megalomaniac. It formed a second personality inside me known as Masquerade. When I was first transformed, my Guardian Bakugan was Reaper. However, at some point I got rid of him and replaced him with Hydranoid here. That's how come I have two," Alice explained.

"That's a pretty cool story, Alice! Now everyone here is learning the whole history of Vestroia!" Tails said.

"Anyway, back to these Ability Cards. How come Kirby has one less?" Pikachu asked.

"It appears that those Ability cards contain the abilities you guys had in Super Smash Brothers Brawl. Since Kirby regained his Inhale ability, the Ability Card disappeared," said a voice that was familiar to the Brawlers. They turned to see Joe walking up to them. "Hey, Brawlers! So, these are the newcomers? It's nice to meet you. My name's Joe. I was kinda eavesdropping on your conversation. Sorry," Joe said.

"And that's Drago's girlfriend, Wayvern," said Diablo, motioning to the white and pink sphere on Joe's shoulder.

"Shut up, already! Stop insulting me!" yelled a jumping Drago.

"They're just teasing, Dragoroonie," Wayvern said.

"Drago…roonie? Ha ha…ha ha ha ha ha!" teased Bowser.

"Looks like old Drago here's quite the Casanova!" mocked Kirby.

Everyone but Drago and Wayvern were chanting, "Drago's got a girlfriend, Drago's got a girlfriend." Wayvern was laughing. Drago was getting frustrated. He jumped off of Dan's shoulder and rolled away.

"It's a good thing I remember how to roll around in this form," Drago muttered.

"Don't worry. Drago just has a bit of a temper," Dan explained.

"I'd better follow Drago, Joe. I can try to calm him down,"

"Okay, Wayvern. I trust you. Don't you go do anything bad, now," teased Joe.

"What kind of Bakugan do you think I am?" Wayvern said. She flew out of Joe's hand and followed Drago.

"As I was saying about the Ability Cards, my best bet is that you need to win a lot of battles to regain your abilities," said Joe.

"I have an idea! If we can get our hands on some Gate Cards, we can battle you guys for training!" said Link.

"That's a great idea!" said Dan. When Drago heard the word 'battle' he rushed right back to Dan. Wayvern went back to Joe.

"I'm better now," Drago explained. Marucho interjected.

"First, let's go back to my place! We need to get your attributes!" he said. They walked back to his skyscraper, and all of the Smashers gazed in amazement. Joe also was amazed at the sight. They went in, and Marucho gave them all a quick tour. Then, he led them to a very large, metal room. A glass ceiling let light in. He threw down a Gate Card. "I have a theory that once you step on this card, our Bakupods will react and tell us your attribute. This way, you can find out without battling." They went on one at a time. Each time one got on, the card would shine a different color.

Mario, CF, and Bowser made the card turn red, which meant that they were Pyrus.

Pikachu and Samus made it turn yellow, so they were Haos.

R.O.B. and Lucario made it turn brown, so they were Subterra.

Link, Sonic, Kirby, and King Dedede made it turn green, so they had to be Ventus.

Ganondorf, Meta Knight, and Mewtwo made it turn black, so they were Darkus.

Once that was done, they were handed other Ability Cards, and they were also given Gate Cards. Link looked at them, then asked a very intelligent question.

"Uh, Marucho, what's with the circle in the upper left hand corner of each Ability Card? The Ability Card that has our Final Smash listed on it has an 'S' in it, but the others have a blank circle."

(I made that up.)

"I was hoping you'd ask! You see, there are three types of Ability Cards. There are Ability Cards, Special Ability Cards, and Fusion Ability Cards. Ability Cards have a plain circle, and Special Ability Cards have an 'S'. Fusion Ability Cards have a swirl pattern. Fusion Ability Cards, like the name says, can be used with another Ability Card. However, if you want to use any other card, you have to wait for the opponent to make a move." Marucho then went over the rules of the game

(That's bascially how they do it in the show.)

After listening to the rules, they went to the park to battle. Mario challenged Dan. He chose Kirby, Sonic, and Ganondorf. The battle was on!

********Start Battle********

"Gate Card, set!" yelled Dan and Mario.

"Bakugan, brawl!" Dan yelled as he threw a red ball. "Griffon, stand!" Dan said. Griffon landed on his card and returned to his normal form.

_**Kirby at 280 Gs. Griffon at 250 Gs.**_

"Cool! I'm more powerful!"

"Not for long! Ability Card, activate! Pyrus and Ventus Co-Relation! Since there is a Pyrus Bakugan and a Ventus Bakugan on the field, my Pyrus Griffon gets a boost of 100 Gs!" said Dan.

_**Griffon at 350 Gs. Kirby still at 280 Gs.**_

"Uh-oh! Hurry up!" yelled Kirby. "Pull out a good card!"

"Kirby! Use-a your Inhale ability!" said Mario. Kirby opened his mouth and sucked in Griffon.

"Griffon!" Dan yelled. "I can't use my Gate Card yet! Darn it!" Kirby spat Griffon out. Kirby had a lion's mane and wings.

"Griffon Kirby!" Kirby yelled.

_**Kirby power increase to 350 Gs. Kirby now a Pyrus Bakugan. Both powers equalized.**_

"Now what?" Kirby asked.

"Gate Card, open!" Dan yelled. "Triple Battle! Now I'll send in my Pyrus Mantris!"

_**Mantris enters battle at 340 Gs. Combined power level of 690 Gs.**_

"Oh-a no, you don't! Ability Card-a, activate! Cook Kirby!"

"Huh?!"

"Eet's-a his Final Smash! It defeats all da opposing Bakugan on da field! I was-a hoping to use eet on Drago, but I had to-a save Kirby's neck," Mario said. Mantris and Griffon were sucked in, and after a few seconds, they came blasting out of the pot. Dan's Bakugan turned into their ball forms. Dan's Gate Card disappeared. Kirby turned to normal and jumped back to the others.

"Well, Kirby would've only been knocked out," Dan said.

"I know! But if Kirby lost, he wouldn't have been able to get closer to gaining his abilities!" Sonic said.

"Oh, right… Well then, let's get serious! Gate Card, set! Bakugan, brawl! Drago, stand!" Dan said.

"Ultimate… Dragonoid!" Drago roared.

"Are you guys ready? Dis-a will be tough!" Mario said. "Gate-a Card, set! Kirby, go!" Both of them landed on Dan's Gate Card.

**_New battle recognized. Drago at 550 Gs. Kirby at 280 Gs._**

"Gate Card, open! Positive Delta!" Dan yelled.

"Dan already has the upper hand! Why is he using that?" Shun pondered.

"It's to make sure that any power-ups they use wont work!" Dan said.

"Kirby, Inhale!" Mario yelled. Kirby managed to inhale Drago. He spat him out and became Dragonoid Kirby.

"How is that puffball able to inhale creatures almost 13 times bigger?!" Drago asked.

_**Kirby change to Pyrus attribute. Kirby power level to 550 Gs. Drago power reduction to 350 Gs due to Positive Delta.**_

"How did you know?!" Dan demanded.

"Duh! I've been giving them advice! I know as much about Bakugan as Alice does," Tails said from the camera.

"Not… so… fast! Ability, activate! Fire Storm!" Dan said. "Now, Fusion Ability Card, activate! Exceed!"

_**Drago power increase to 650 Gs.**_

"Uh-oh." Mario said.

"Oh cr…" Kirby almost said. KABOOM!!!!! Kirby went flying toward the others.

"Owowowowowowowowowowowowowowo..." Kirby groaned.

"Looks-a like eet's your turn Ganondorf," Mario said.

"Very well. Let us finish this," Ganondorf said. Ganondorf jumped onto Mario's Gate Card.

"Let's get this started! Bakugan, brawl! Drago, stand!"

_**New battle recognized. Drago at 650 Gs. Ganondorf at 500 Gs.**_

"Holy cow! Ganondorf is as strong as Exedra!" Alice exclaimed.

"That is because I am the King of Darkness!" Ganondorf gloated.

"More like the King of Narcissism," Link teased.

"Drago, attack!" Dan said.

"Ability Card-a, activate! Pyrus and Darkus Diagonal Relation!" Mario said.

_**Ganondorf power increase to 600 Gs. Drago still at 650 Gs.**_

"Mario, get a Fusion Ability Card! Hurry!" Ganondorf yelled.

"I-a can't find one for-a you!" Mario panicked. BOOM!! Ganondorf went flying off the Gate Card, which went back to Mario.

"Why didn't you use that?!" Ganondorf whispered angrily.

"The picture shows a Skyress, so I guess eet only works for-a Ventus types. Sorry," Mario explained quietly. "I have another one-a, though." Drago went back to Dan.

"We only have one each! Sonic and Drago! If you beat him, I'm sure you'll get an ability back!" Dan said.

"Okay, Dan! Let's-a finish this! Gate-a Card, set! Sonic, go!" Mario commanded.

"Bakugan, brawl! Drago, stand!" Dan said. They landed Mario's card.

_**Drago enters battle at 650 Gs. Sonic at 340 Gs.**_

"Oh man, I'm done for." Sonic grumbled.

"I may not have any more Ability Cards, but I don't need them! Drago, attack!" Dan ordered. Drago blasted a fireball at Sonic. The fireball engulfed Sonic, but Mario wasn't worried.

"Gate Card-a, open! Duck and Win!" Mario said.

"Whaaat?!?" Dan yelled.

"Duck and Win simply states that-a da Bakugan with da lowest amount of-a Gs wins da battle!" Mario said slyly. A charred Sonic launched himself at Drago. Drago fell with a thud on the ground, and turned into his ball form. He clacked on the ground a few times. The Gate Cards returned to Dan and Mario.

********End Battle********

"That was incredible! You managed to win a battle against Ultimate Drago, and won! And you never battled before!" Dan said. Suddenly, Sonic's disks appeared above him. One of them went inside him.

"I wonder what it was." Sonic said. Mario noticed that Sonic's gluteus maximus was ablaze.

"Uhh, Sonic? Your butt's on-a fire," Mario muttered.

"Huh?" Sonic asked. He looked down. "Aaaaaahhhh!" he screamed. He then remarkably used Spin Dash, and it was extinguished. "Awesome! I have my trademark Spin Dash!"

"But you don't have your other trade mark, your Homing Attack…" Tails added.

"Oh," Sonic groaned.

"Duck and Win doesn't just work for Ventus types, Mario," Dan whispered.

"Aw man!" Mario groaned. Marucho let the Smashers sleep in his skyscraper. The other Brawlers went home. Joe and Dan noticed Wayvern and Drago walking away, obviously wanting time to catch up and see the city in a new way. Of course, they didn't care.

"Good night, Joe!"

"See ya, Dan!" The two split up and went home.

**Looks like the Smashers are settling in to their temporary home, and they already have the hang of Bakugan battles! Looks like the Smashers are in for a wild adventure!**


	4. The First Journey

**In the last chapter, the Smashers were sent to Earth, where they met the Bakugan Battle Brawlers. They found out that in order to regain their lost abilities, they needed to win a lot of battles. What new adventure awaits them in this chapter of…Bakugan Smashers!**

The morning sun arose in the Brawlers' hometown. The Smashers had a good night's sleep in Marucho's skyscraper of a house. Today will take them on an adventure of scenic proportions…

"Ahhhhh…. 'yawn'…" Sonic muttered.

"Today's gonna be a great-a day," Mario happily said.

"I wonder what time it is. Let's see…6:00 A.M. I wonder what woke me up," Link wondered. The screen in the room where all of the Smashers were flashed.

"Excuse me young masters and misses, but your breakfast is ready," Marucho's butler, Kato, announced.

"Thanks, Kato. We'll be right there," Captain Falcon replied.

"Very good, sir," Kato answered. The screen turned off.

"Let's go! I don't want to miss breakfast!" Kirby squealed.

"Oh no. WE will go to breakfast. YOU will wait here until we're done, then you can suck up the rest of the food. You're not gonna suck up everything before we sit our butts down, Kirby," Ganondorf ordered.

"You're right…" Kirby sighed. All of the Smashers but Kirby went to the breakfast hall and sat down. Marucho noticed that Kirby was gone.

"Hey, where's Kirby?" Marucho asked.

"Kirby is politely waiting to eat so that we can eat without him sucking up all of the food," Bowser answered.

"Yeah. We already went through that already," Sonic said. Marucho's parents, Shoko and Kia, giggled at the thought of Kirby sucking up an entire feast.

"There's no way such a small kid could eat this much," Kia said laughingly.

"Oh, really? Well you won't be laughing after I tell you this. The kid is a bottomless pit. Literally. He has no stomach," Ganondorf said. Marucho's parents were immediately silenced with amazement.

"What do you mean that he has no stomach?" Shoko asked.

"I mean just what I mean. Kirby's species lacks a stomach, allowing them to eat without limitations. They actually contain a strange dimensional portal," Ganondorf replied.

"What an interesting Smasher," Kia said with interest in her voice. "But still, I don't think he should suffer until all of you are done." Meanwhile, Kirby was outside the door, with mouth watering over the sight of all the food. Mario smiled with a good thought in his head.

"I have an idea! Since Kirby is probably waiting outside the doors, instead of putting the leftovers in the garbage disposal or whatever you do, we could take what's left on your plates and throw them into Kirby's huge pie hole!" Mario suggested. The other Smashers laughed at Mario's comment.

"Yeah! We should treat Kirby like a he's a living garbage disposal! After all, his belly eliminates food no problem!" Bowser teased.

"And have you seen the way he eats? I swear his mouth is a black hole! It's small, but nothing escapes that gap of his! Ha ha ha!" Sonic teased. Kirby never minded the jokes. He was used to them.

"How come you guys tease Kirby all the time?" Marucho asked.

"Don't worry, we tease him all the time. He doesn't mind them. So, what's for breakfast?" Sonic asked.

"Ah, yes. Today we're having breakfast burritos!" Kia replied. Kato removed the lids off of the hot plates. The Smashers loved the scent of scrambled eggs, thin Angus beef slices, Italian sausage, gourmet cheese, small hash browns, and small droplets of syrup all wrapped in a white flour tortilla. The communicator button on the video camera flashed yet again.

"That must be Tails calling, you should probably take it, Sonic," Link said.

"Right." Sonic pressed the button. "Hey Tails! What is it?"

"WHAT IS IT?!" Tails yelled with an angry face. Everyone heard Tails' yelling.

"Whoaa!!!" Sonic said as he fell out of his chair. "What's wrong with you?"

"You idiot! You left the video camera on all night!" Tails yelled.

"Relax, buddy! Remember? You installed that new kilo-electron battery circuit. You know, the one that that is able to last for three months in continuous use?" Sonic told him.

"It's still in the testing stage, Sonic!" Tails informed him. Sonic pressed the battery button. It didn't go down a single bar.

"Told you there was nothing to worry about," Sonic said.

"Whatever. Anyway, where are you guys going to today?" Tails asked.

"Since we already beat Dan, I think we should find another Pyrus Bakugan player who's really skilled," Captain Falcon said. Tails was pulling up a file on his laptop.

"What are you doing, Tails?" Pikachu asked.

"Joe and I woke up earlier this morning and he sent me the URL for the Bakugan webpage," Tails explained. "I managed to open a small portal to your dimension that was just big enough to let a two inch object through, such as my wrist communicator. So, I sent it through, and Joe picked it up as I intended. Anyway, according to this, the second strongest Pyrus player is a girl named Chan-Lee. Her guardian Bakugan is Pyrus Fortress. But she lives far away from here." Dan walked through the door.

"Morning, guys!" Dan said.

"Dan! What brings you here so early?" Marucho asked, shocked.

"I wanted to check up on our new friends," Dan replied.

"Where's Drago?" Lucario wondered. Joe walked in behind Dan.

"I think he's still out with Wayvern," Joe answered.

"Probably taking a re-tour of the city," Kirby said from behind the door. Everyone had a pleasant chat and ate most of the food. They gave Kirby the leftovers. Kirby was pleased and plump. Meanwhile, at a cave in Bakugan Valley, Drago and Wayvern awoke from their long night. Drago noticed that the sun was up.

"Uh oh… I'd better get back to Dan!" Drago said.

"I should probably head home too," Wayvern agreed.

"It was great talking to you, again, Wayvern."

"Same here," Wayvern said. Drago blushed for some reason.

"Let's go," Drago said. The two rolled as quickly was they could back toward their houses. When they passed Marucho's house, they saw Dan and Joe talking with the others outside. They walked back to them silently.

"Hey! There's Drago!" Dan said. "Hey there, buddy. Did you have fun being out all night?" Dan asked.

"What?! You…you knew?!" Drago yelled.

"We saw you two waddle away last night," Joe said. "But we don't care."

"So, what did you do last night?" Dan asked, pressuring Drago.

"Nothing. Just talked," Wayvern said. Dan raised an eyebrow, making Drago get mad.

"Would you stop looking at me like that?!" Drago roared.

"Hey, calm down, buddy!" Dan told him.

"Yeah!" Joe said.

"I never realized how much Drago is like Dan. I mean, they're usually calm and relaxed, but they have a fuse about only about as big as my fingernail," Sonic said.

"What'd you say?!" the two yelled.

"I mean, you guys get easily enraged when you get humiliated or when you jump to conclusions. No offense, but it's true," Sonic explained. Dan and Drago surprisingly calmed down.

"I guess you're right. I never realized how temperamental we can be sometimes," Drago submissed. The other Brawlers arrived at Marucho's house at 6:45.

"Hey guys!" Dan cheered.

"Hi, Dan!" Runo hollered. She ran over to them. The Brawlers and the Smashers sat near the fountain since Alice had an important question.

"Hey, guys, I've been wondering this since we met you all yesterday, but I forgot to ask you. How did you guys come here, anyway?" Alice asked.

"It's a pretty crazy story. Are you sure you want to know?" Sonic asked.

"Of course!" Julie exclaimed. "It could help us out!"

"Well, it kinda goes like this. I was just sitting outside of the Nintendo/Sega Library eating chili dogs, when I heard Dr. Eggman laughing maniacally. I saw him in his Egg-o-Matic and it had the seven Chaos Emeralds on a huge disk. I grabbed Tails from inside the library and we gave chase. We chased him to the middle of the forest near the library and cornered him. He sent out his Eggman sentries, and once we turned them all into scrap metal, the Chaos Emeralds started to glow, and a portal opened up. The Chaos Emeralds went inside, and the portal became this huge vacuum. We were sucked inside, while most of the Smashers managed to take cover. We found ourselves in the center of Vestroia, where we saw the two cores. They seemed a little bit shaky to me, but I never thought anything of it. The Chaos Emeralds were between the two cores. We tried to get them, but an energy field blew us back, and sent us into the actual Vestroia, where we met Darkus Reaper. He told us what had happened, and he went through the portal. We followed, and ended up here," Sonic explained.

"So, the Chaos Emeralds were what caused you to get sucked in? Hmm…" Alice said.

"I think maybe that the forest you were in may have had some similar properties to Vestroia!" Marucho hypothesized.

"No. That doesn't make any sense," Alice said.

"How?" Marucho defied.

"Because. The first time the Bakugan came to Earth, the portal was everywhere. In the forest, it was just a small one. And, do you think it was a coincidence that the portal just happened to be where the Chaos Emeralds were?" Alice led on.

"Wait. Are you saying that maybe there's some Bakugan more evil than Naga behind this?" Tails asked.

"I'm not sure, but it is a possibility," Alice said. "Drago, we already know that there is only one Bakugan who is a 'white one'. Have you ever heard of any other Bakugan that are mutated?"

"No I'm afraid I haven't," Drago apologized. "Speaking of mutated Bakugan, I wonder what type Wayvern would be if she weren't a Bakugan with no type."

"My guess, with her abilities Big Bang Blaze and Shining Pyrus, she'd be a Pyrus/Haos hybrid," Joe thought.

"Hey! I forgot about those hybrid Bakugan. What happened to them?" Dan asked.

"I haven't heard anything. I guess they disappeared, or were transported to another dimension," Skyress answered. Suddenly, Wayvern began to glow!

"Wayvern! What's going on?" Joe asked.

"I…can feel this odd power in me! It's like my body's changing!" Wayvern said. The purple on her body turned to red, and she got yellow lines on her body, like a Haos Bakugan. The lavender shapes on her wings were now red. Wayvern stopped glowing and looked totally new in color.

"Wayvern…did you…evolve?" Joe asked.

"No. I haven't. My body just feels like it isn't a neutral type anymore," Wayvern replied. Joe's Bakupod flashed.

"Wayvern attribute change. Now recognized as Pyrus and Haos hybrid Bakugan," the Bakupod said.

"Cool!" Angelo said. Angelo turned over and Diablo popped up.

"Welcome to the club, sister! You're the third hybrid Bakugan on the team!" Diablo snarled happily.

"That's right! I forgot! Angelo is an Aquos/Haos type, and Diablo is an Aquos/Pyrus type!" Marucho remembered.

"How could you have forgotten that?" Preyas asked.

"It's been five years, Preyas!" Marucho explained.

"Wait a minute," Alice interrupted.

"Yeah, what is it?" Sonic asked.

"If the elements of Vestroia were able to combine, do you think that it's possible that Vestroia used to be united a really long time ago?" Alice thought.

"Yes. Vestroia was once one sanctuary, as it is now. However, that all changed when the core split for some reason. But I have heard of legends from that time. For instance, during that time, any Bakugan could reach an Ultimate state. If six Bakugan, each a different element, fused, they'd form a being called a Gold One. However, they became power-hungry, and they tried to take the core. Thankfully, when it separated, no more Gold Ones could be born, and the energy wave obliterated all surviving ones," Drago quoted.

"So, if we were able to become ultimate, if we fused, we'd make a Gold One?" Preyas asked hopefully.

"Yes. But, even if you all were to become ultimate, we couldn't fuse together," Drago said.

"Speaking of fusing, it's too bad Angelo and Diablo are stuck," Marucho said.

"All Bakugan have the ability to evolve, Marucho. Even evolved forms do. Maybe their evolution is that they separate and get higher Gs," Shun reminded him.

"You're right! If I can get them to evolve, they might separate!" Marucho cheered.

"Then again, they could just actually fuse with Preyas into one being," Shun added.

"A three type Preyas?!" Preyas screamed. "How would I be able to do my attribute change if that happens?!"

"Well, since you'd be Pyrus, Aquos, and Haos, maybe you could become a Ventus, Subterra, and Darkus triad," Joe said, hoping to cheer him up.

"Back to these Gold Ones. Is it still possible one could be around, and is plotting to destroy everything?" Shun asked Alice.

"Maybe…"

"So, where will we be going?" Dan asked.

"I'm thinking we should go find this Chan-Lee girl. We've gotten quite experienced with battling Pyrus Bakugan," Lucario suggested.

"Good idea! Let's go! We can take my private jet there!" Marucho offered. Again, Sonic fainted with envy. Dan put Sonic onto the plane, and they took off into the sky. When they reached Chan-Lee's hometown, Chan-Lee ran up to Joe and hugged him.

"Joey! It's so nice to see you!"

"Hey, Chan," Joe replied.

"Chan?" Lucario asked.

"Chan-Lee is her real first name, and Chan's her nickname." Dan said.

"Hey guys! Who are these Bakugan?" Chan asked.

"We're not actually Bakugan. We came here from Smash World," Sonic explained.

"Oh wow! Cool! I recognize you guys!" Chan exclaimed. "So, what can I help you with?"

"Well…" Pikachu began as he explained their predicament.

"What?! You guys lost your abilities? That's horrible! Well, if you need to win battles against a lot of Bakugan, I can help you out!" Chan accepted.

"Okay! So, who's going to go against her?" Lucario asked. Marucho stepped in.

"How about a two on one, Chan?" Marucho challenged. "I want to get Angelo and Diablo to evolve!"

"Sure. Why not? I can take five at once," Chan gloated.

"Awesome! Let's do this! It'll be Preyas, Angelo/Diablo Preyas, Mario, Meta-Knight, and me against you! Sonic, you're in charge of the Cards this time," Lucario said.

"Gate Card, set!" all three yelled. Chan started doing some ninja moves.

"Bakugan, brawl! Garganoid, stand!" Chan ordered.

"Mario! Go for it!" Sonic said. The flash that went around Mario turned red.

"Mario recognized as Pyrus Bakugan with 330 Gs," the Bakupods said.

"Bakugan, brawl! Preyas, stand!" Marucho said. Preyas did his comical umbrella opening.

"Could you focus, Preyas?!" Mario yelled at him. All three were on different Gate Cards.

"Meta Knight! Get on Garganoid's Gate Card!" Sonic encouraged. Meta Knight landed on the Gate Card. The flash around him turned black.

"Meta Knight recognized as Darkus Bakugan. Power level at 340 Gs. Garganoid at 320 Gs."

"Ha! Got you! Gate Card, open! Triple Battle!" Chan yelled. A barrier went between Meta Knight and Garganoid. 'Those guys will probably fall for my trap and shoot a Bakugan onto it. Once they do, I'll use my Doom Companion Card!' she planned. Meanwhile, Sonic was talking to Tails for a strategy.

"Ability Card, activate! Galaxia Darkness!" Sonic exclaimed. "This card is Meta Knight's Final Smash. It nullifies your Gate Card, and it has Meta Knight attack its opponent! Go get 'em!" Meta Knight charged at Garganoid and defeated him.

"Not bad, you guys! Now, let's get this battle going! Gate Card, set! Bakugan, brawl! Mantris, stand!"

"Meta Knight, go!" Sonic said.

"New battle recognized. Mantris and Meta Knight at 340 Gs."

"They have the same power level!" Sonic exclaimed.

"Gate Card, set! Bakugan, brawl! Preyas, stand!" Marucho yelled.

"Not for long! Gate Card, open! Quartet Battle! With this, we both have to send in another Bakugan and combine their power levels!" Chan explained.

"Okay then! Lucario, go!" Sonic said.

"Lucario recognized as Subterra type. Power level at 400 Gs."

"Bakugan, brawl! Fortress, stand!" Chan ordered. Fortress went to Mantris.

"Combined power levels of Mantris and Fortress at 740 Gs. Meta Knight and Lucario at 740 Gs."

"They're still the same! I never imagined Lucario's power to be 400!"

"Preyas! Change your attribute to Ventus!" Marucho yelled.

"Change of attribute! Ventus!" Preyas said.

"Ability Card, activate! Triple Node!" Sonic yelled.

"What?!"

"Since I have a Ventus, Subterra, and Darkus on the field, their power level goes up 200 Gs each!"

"Meta Knight and Lucario combined power increase of 400 Gs. Power level now at 1140 Gs."

"Their Gs are through the roof!" Chan exclaimed. "Well, it doesn't matter. I activate the ability card, Doom Companion!"

"Are you crazy? You'll destroy your two Bakugan and lose!" Sonic yelled.

"Ability card, activate! Revive!" Chan said. She regained her Garganoid. Explosions started to happen on the field.

"You'll still have made your Mantris and Fortress faint!" Mario yelled from the sidelines.

"I have another Revive, you know," Chan said.

"Item Card, activate! Interceptor!" Sonic said. "This Card allows me to send another Bakugan into the battle! Mario, go!"

"Are you nuts?"

"I have a plan! Trust me!" Mario nodded and jumped onto the Gate Card. "Ability Card, activate! F.L.U.D.D!" F.L.U.D.D appeared on Mario's back. "When Mario has F.L.U.D.D with him, he can douse your Ability Card!" Sonic said. Chan's Doom Companion card disappeared.

"Okay! Attack!" Sonic yelled.

"Hold it! I activate these Ability Cards! Fire Tornado! Twin Machete! And Rapid Fire!" Chan yelled.

"Meta Knight and Lucario down to 1040 Gs. Mantris and Fortress increase to 840 Gs. Mantris power increase of 100 Gs. Garganoid enters battle at 320 Gs. Mantris, Fortress, and Garganoid combined power level at 1260 Gs.

"What do we do what do we do what do we do?!" Mario screamed. Meta Knight was taken out in a blaze. They were about to attack the others, but Sonic pulled out two cards.

"I activate the Ability Cards, Mario Finale and Aura Storm!"

"Lucario power increase to 500 Gs. Mario power increase to 400 Gs. Combined power total of 1210 Gs."

"My Bakugan are still stronger!" Chan said.

"Oh, yeah? Well, take this! Ability Card, activate! Move Steal! With this card, I can use one of your abilities and use it! Lucario! Steal Mantris' Marionette and use it to move Preyas your side of the Gate Card!" Sonic said. Lucario got strings and wrapped Preyas.

"Here I come!" Preyas yelled.

"Preyas enters battle. Combined power levels now at 1550 Gs."

"Item Card, activate! Role-Call Orb! With this, I can bring in Angelo/Diablo Preyas and have them combine power levels!"

"Angelo Preyas enters battle. Combined power levels now at 1950 Gs."

"What the heck?!" Chan yelled.

"Ooh, looks like this is the finisher!" Angelo said.

Mario shot out two giant fireballs, and Lucario shot out a huge beam of aura. Preyas and Angelo attacked them together. Chan's three Bakugan were taken out. The battle ended.

"That was incredible! You guys pulled off some wicked combos!" Dan cheered. Meta Knight woke up. Only, he didn't look like himself.

"Ugh. My head," Meta Knight groaned. When he stood up, everyone was staring at him.

"Who the heck are you?" Sonic asked.

"What do you mean?" Meta Knight asked.

"It's like looking in a blue mirror!" Kirby yelled.

"Huh?" Meta knight touched his face and realized the truth. His mask had fallen off! Meta-Knight was frantically looking for it. He found it near Chan. He picked it up, put it back on, and regained his composure.

The disks appeared above the Smashers. Meta-Knight regained his Mach Tornado ability, Mario regained his fireball technique, and Lucario gained his Aura Sphere.

"This is strange. The abilities we gained back weren't even used!" Meta-Knight said.

"Well, it makes perfect sense! Kirby gained Inhale, you gained Mach Tornado, Lucario gained Aura Sphere, Sonic got his Spin Dash and super speed, and Mario gained Fireball. What do those have in common, besides the sonic speed which is unrelated?" Joe asked.

"There our standard B moves in Brawl!" Sonic said.

"Exactly," Joe said.

"Uh…no. Homing Attack is Sonic's B move. Sonic must've been affected slightly differently," Tails said.

"Hey, uh guys?" Alice said with a shaky voice.

"What is it Alice? Why are you all shaky?" Dan asked.

"I just realized two things. One, if the Infinity Core restored Wayvern, then…"

"Are you saying Naga might be behind this?!" Dan exclaimed, shocked.

"It's possible. The other thing is, have you noticed that no energy waves have appeared? What if something happened to Vestroia?" Alice gasped.

"No. That can't be it." Drago said.

"Maybe the Chaos Emeralds' positive and negative energy is counterbalancing the cores and stabilizing them," Sonic said.

"Hey! I'm the braniac around here, not you!" Tails said.

"The Chaos Emeralds have the ability to store any energy that they absorb. So, if something happened to the cores, I'm sure the Chaos Emeralds would keep Vestroia stabilized," Sonic added.

"At the rate of absorption, I'd say that their powers would've been equalized about five hours ago in this world's time," Tails said. "Time moves very differently between the two dimensions. Although you guys were there for only a few seconds, ten hours had passed in this world."

"Speaking of which, Drago, I have something for you!" Wayvern said. "When I was still in my energy form, right after the cores expelled you, I passed the cores and Chaos Emeralds. I managed to absorb the cores, which is why Vestroia hasn't expanded. Here! Take them!" The Infinity and Silent Core came out from her body and into Drago. Drago suddenly returned to normal size and began to glow.

"Raaaah! Supreme Dragonoid!" Drago yelled. Wayvern admired the new Drago.

"Oooh la la!" Wayvern cooed.

"My Bakupod says that Drago's at 2000 Gs!" Dan yelled. "Incredible!" Preyas, Angelo, and Diablo returned to normal size and began to glow. Angelo and Diablo managed to split apart. The three started to glow again. They were three different colors. Preyas was blue, Angelo was white, and Diablo was red. The three came together.

"Are they evolving?!" Marucho said. The three fused into one Bakugan, but he wasn't a hybrid as Shun's second prediction stated. Preyas looked almost normal except for having Diablo's wings and Angelo's arm feathers.

"Hey! Cool! I've evolved! That means I'm…Ultimate Preyas!" Preyas exclaimed.

"Indeed. That is Preyas' Ultimate Form, now that I remember. Preyas combines with Angelo and Diablo, yet retains his personality and Aquos attribute," Drago explained. The Brawlers and Smashers had a good chat with Chan and left, planning out their next journey.

**So, Supreme Drago has the cores, Preyas has evolved, and Vestroia is stabilized. The Brawlers think that maybe a reborn Naga is behind the expansion of Vestroia. Where will the Smashers go next to regain their abilities? Be patient, loyal readers. Chapter 5 is on the way.**


	5. Haos Brawl 1 and the New Adversary

"Oh, come on guys! What do you mean you don't feel like doing anything?" Dan said. The Brawlers were just lying around in the giant plane. They had no idea what they were going to do. All of the smashers but Sonic were bored out of their minds.

"Yeah! Dan's right! We should be using this opportunity to find out the villain who's behind this whole mess!" Sonic tried to encourage.

"Sonic, how on Earth would that help?" Link asked.

"If we know our enemy, we can formulate a strategy!" Sonic tried to explain. Sonic started to lose hope upon seeing the bored faces of the smashers and the Brawlers. He truly admired Dan's active personality. 'That Dan is like the person form of me! He's active, always trying to think of things to cheer people up, and he's carefree!' Suddenly, an idea sparked in Sonic's head. "Hey! I just got an awesome idea!" Sonic pressed the communicator button. "Tails, come in." Tails appeared on the screen.

"What is it Sonic?" Tails asked.

"I just got an idea. Open the files on the portal and when we were in the center. I'll plug the camera into the TV." Sonic explained. Sonic went over to the large blank TV that the others were staring at and plugged the camera in. The TV came on. Green numbers and a date appeared on the screen. The recording of the camera appeared. The Brawlers and smashers immediately sat up and watch it attentively, hoping for a lead. The recording played in real time. The date, 6/20/08. The time, 1:43 P.M. The place, Smash World.

"Wait. Is that time in Smash World or our world?" Dan asked.

"Since Tails' made the camera according to our time, it was the same day, but it was 9:00 A.M. in your time," Ganondorf explained. As the recording played, thirty seconds into it, Sonic started hearing strange moaning right before the Chaos Emeralds floated into it. Once they were inside, the moaning stopped.

"Tails. Rewind the tape to fifteen seconds ago and increase the volume," Sonic said. Tails did just as Sonic asked. He had no idea why, but he did anyway.

"Suddenly, everyone heard the strange moaning.

"Urrrrrgh. Urrrrrgh." the voice said.

"Why is their moaning coming from the recording? Is something wrong with the camera?" Dan asked.

"No. It's not the camera, and it's not moaning. They're words, but the dimensional wormhole seems to be jamming the frequency." Sonic said.

"How come you're getting so smart? That's my shtick!" Tails criticized.

"I know. It's weird," Sonic explained.

"Since this place has nullified most of our abilities, I have a feeling it has given us something in return," Lucario explained.

"What is it with you and that stupid yin-yang philosophy of yours? You always say that if something bad happens, eventually something good happens." Sonic asked. "Hey Tails, try increasing the frequency by 50%." Tails increased the frequency and replayed the tape.

"I can f… it. The immense p….. from anoth.. dimen.... This will su…. help me to de….. Vest…. and all of the oth.. dimensions. I must h… it…" the strange voice muttered.

"I could only make out so many words from the parts from where they were broken off, but as far as I can tell, some were another, dimension, Vestroia, other…" Sonic partially translated. "Also, I think there were four sentences.

"So…let's see. The voice said, 'I can [something] it. The immense [something] from another dimension. This will [something] help me to de [something] Vestroia and all of the other dimensions. I must [something] it." Pikachu made out.

"I could increase the frequency, but the 70% could hurt your ears," Tails said.

"Let's try to figure out the second sentence first. What do you know exists, but it's not near you?" Bowser said.

"It also has to begin with a p," Pikachu added.

"Power! It's so simple! That creature opened p the portal to get the Chaos Emeralds, which are full of power!" Mario said excitedly. "And, that can help us with the first sentence. What can you do with power that is far away? And the word begins with an f?"

"Feel?" Mewtwo asked.

"Exactly! So, the first two sentences are, 'I can feel it. The immense power from another dimension.'"

"But who is making that voice? I say, increase the frequency." Ganondorf ordered Tails.

"Okay…" Tails turned up the frequency. The loud humming sound was driving Bowser, Sonic, Kirby, Pikachu, Mewtwo, Lucario, Meta-Knight, and King Dedede crazy.

"Aaaah! When you thought you said it would hurt our ears, I didn't know you meant like this! Aaaah!" Sonic screamed.

"Sorry!" yelled a shivering Tails. The noise also disturbed him. The Brawlers and Bakugan were staring at them.

"Are you okay?!" Dan asked. He had no idea how sensitive their ears were.

"Does it look like we're okay?!" Sonic yelled. After a minute of being pinned to the ground, the smashers regained their balance a little. They were still a little wobbly. Tails restarted the tape. The voice was loud and clear.

"I can feel it! The immense power from another dimension! This will surely help me to destroy Vestroia and all the other dimensions! I must have it!" the voice exclaimed.

"That IS Naga! He's been reborn somehow! I know he's behind this!" Drago exclaimed.

"I bet that since he failed at taking over Vestroia and Earth, he's just trying to blow up everything and make him the only being in existence!" Tails said.

"What an evil megalomaniac! He's even worse than me!" said a voice. Sonic looked onto the video camera. It was Dr. Eggman. Sonic unplugged the camera. All of the data was stored inside the computer mainframe, so id didn't matter.

"Dr. Eggman! Why are you at Tails' lab?" Sonic growled.

"I'm trying to help save our dimension, that's what!" Dr. Eggman snapped. "If everything's destroyed, I'd be destroyed, too you nitwit!"

"Where's Metal?" Sonic asked.

"He's helping Tails build a teleportation device." Suddenly, Eggman was pushed off of the screen. A pink hedgehog appeared.

"Sonic! Oh, Sonic, it's so good to see you!" Amy cheered.

"Amy?" sonic exclaimed.

"Don't worry, Sonic! Once the teleporter is ready, I'll be sure to come see you!" Amy assured.

"Don't you dare! Don't you even think about coming here too! I will not let you cling on to me while I'm already frustrated!" Sonic snapped. Amy started to get upset.

"B…but…" Amy whimpered.

"No buts, Amy! I'm tired, frustrated, confused, have almost none of my abilities, stuck on a plane with nothing to do, and you're too blindly in love with me to even think about that!" a really angry Sonic yelled.

"Fine. I'll just call back later," Amy said in a huff. Soon, the plane landed near a house that was unfamiliar to any of them.

"Where's this?" Mario asked.

"Marucho asked me to drop by Julio Santana's house so that you could gain some Haos experience," Kato explained.

"Haos? But, if we're going to face a tough Haos player, shouldn't we battle someone else a little lower than him to learn what to do?" King Dedede asked.

"I'm glad you thought of that! I'll battle you first!" Runo offered.

"Okay! Let's go outside!" they said. As soon as Sonic's feet touched open wide ground, he immediately felt better.

"Man, this just makes me feel great! I just can't stay cooped up in a plane for hours!" Sonic explained. "I'm gonna run rings around the world to blow off some of this energy!" He took off like a rocket to go around the world. Julio came outside.

"Who are you guys and what are you doing at the house of Julio Santana?" Julio asked.

"They're smashers. They came here from Smash World and are trying to regain their abilities. They were going to battle you, but since they have no experience in Haos, I'm going to Brawl with them first," Runo explained. "So! Have you guys decided who you're going to use?"

"Yeah. It'll be King Dedede, Samus, and R.O.B. I'm in control of the cards." Mewtwo said.

"Okay, let's do this!" Runo said.

"Gate Card…set!"

"Bakugan, Brawl! Haos Siege, stand!"

"Gate Card, set. King Dedede, go." They landed on separate Gate Cards.

"King Dedede recognized as Ventus Bakugan at 420Gs."

"A suitable power level for a king,"

"Ability Card, activate. Inhale. This allows me to move one Bakugan to King Dedede's Gate Card." King Dedede inhaled Haos Siege.

"New battle recognized. Haos Siege at 350. Dedede has the upper hand." King Dedede was punching him repeatedly. Haos Siege went down. King Dedede returned to the smashers.

"Gate Card, set! Bakugan, Brawl! Hynoid, stand!"

"Gate Card, set. King Dedede, go." King Dedede jumped onto Hynoid's Gate Card.

"New battle commencing. Hynoid at 310 Gs. Dedede at 420 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Rapid Haos! With this, I can shoot in Blade Tigrerra!"

"Blade Tigrerra enters battle. Combined G power at 760 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate. Ventus and Haos diagonal relation."

"Dedede to 520 Gs."

"Ability, activate. Jet Hammer. This lowers your Gs by 100, and boots Dedede by 200."

"Blade Tigrerra and Hynoid down to 660 Gs. King Dedede power up to 720 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Velocity Fang!" Tigrerra charged at Dedede and sliced through him.

"Owowowowo….." Dedede moaned.

"Dedede decreased by 200 Gs by nullified Ability Card. Dedede power decrease of 100 Gs. Dedede now at 420 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate. Waddle-Dee army. This card, which is Dedede's Final Smash, has three certain features. An army of Waddle-Dees, Waddle-Doos, and Gordos are unleashed on your Bakugan. Dees decrease by 10, Doos by 30, and Gordos by 50. I highly recommend that your Bakugan start dodging." King Dedede started chanting and clapping. The army arrived. It was like a storm a shrimps! Tigrerra and Hynoid kept dodging, but they were hit a few times since there were so many. The immense power caused the lake nearby to start shaking. They were hit by 10 Waddle-Dees, 5 Waddle Doos, and 2 Gordos.

"Tigrerra and Hynoid down 100 Gs. Down 150 Gs. Down 100 Gs. Tigrerra and Hynoid now at 310 Gs."

"Not so fast! Gate Card, open! Character! With this, Blade Tigrerra gets a boost of her base G level!"

"Tigrerra power increase of 450 Gs. Combined G level of 760 Gs."

"Great. We're back to square one. Let's see…Gate Card, set. R.O.B., go for it." R.O.B. jumped onto his Gate Card.

"R.O.B. classified as Subterra Bakugan at 390 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate. Diffusion Beam. Being R.O.B's Final Smash, this allows him to destroy one Bakugan anywhere on the field, from anywhere on the field." R.O.B's eyes were glowing red, then a spiraling beam blasted Blade Tigrerra. She was knocked out cold.

"Now it is just King Dedede versus you," R.O.B. said in his mechanical voice.

"Gate Card, set. Samus, go for it. Dedede may need back-up." Samus landed on her Gate Card.

"Samus classified as Haos type Bakugan at 410 Gs."

"Now. There are only four Gate Cards on the field, and one is blank. So, let's see. Item Card, activate. Assist Trophy. This card sends in a random character, which is counted as a separate Bakugan. Now, let's see who it is." Mewtwo said.

"Boy. You sure don't act emotional, do you?" Runo asked.

"For some reason, I was made to not have any change in my voice,"

"Hmmm…." Suddenly, an opaque capsule appeared on the blank Gate Card. Knuckle Joe popped out.

"Knuckle Joe!" Kirby yelled. "How are you?" Knuckle Joe nodded back.

"Knuckle Joe classified as Haos at 300 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Solar Ray!"

"Hynoid power increase to 410 Gs. Dedede at 420 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Wall Burst!"

"Dedede power decrease of 100 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate. Zero Laser. This card, being Samus' Final Smash, allows her to attack any Bakugan on the field. Samus, go get Hynoid. Samus blasted her gigantic Zero Laser.

"Ability Card, activate! Lightning Shield!"

"Samus power decrease of 100 Gs. Now at 310 Gs. Hynoid at 410 Gs." The Zero Laser hit Hynoid but did nothing. Samus' armor fell off. She became Zero Suit Samus.

"Is that an evolution?" Runo asked.

"I wouldn't call losing my armor an evolution. It's just my Zero Suit Form," Samus explained. Marucho started to drool. Julie slapped him in the back of the head.

"Samus slight power decrease of 10 Gs."

"300 to 410. Ouch. Let's see. Ability Card, activate. Paralyzer. This prevents you from doing anything for your Bakugan for this battle. This will give me a chance to figure out what to do." Knuckle Joe started to yell.

"Come on! I want to see some action!"

"Very well. Ability Card, activate. Laser Whip. Samus, move Knuckle Joe to Hynoid's Gate Card." Knuckle Joe jumped up as Samus' Laser Whip went around him. He was slung to the Gate Card.

"Knuckle Joe enters battle. Combined power level of 620 Gs."

"Knuckle Joe, attack." Knuckle Joe hit Hynoid repeatedly, then delivered his Thunderpunch. King Dedede hit Hynoid with a solid punch. Julio was deeply impressed. Runo lost the battle. Knuckle Joe disappeared, and the Gate Cards were returned. Sonic had just gotten back after the battle ended. He suddenly noticed a pipe materializing in front of him.

"Uh…guys? Look," Sonic said. The smashers and the Brawlers looked as a pipe materialized right in front of their eyes. Mario went over to it and opened it.

"Holy cow! This lead's to…Peach's Castle?! But how?!" Mario yelled.

"My guess is that Naga is trying to intertwine every world into one, thereby making them easier to destroy," Wayvern explained. Suddenly, a loud beeping came on the video camera.

"That's the alarm in Tails' lab!" Sonic yelled. He pushed the button. A burned and bruised Eggman and Tails appeared on the screen.

"It's Metal Sonic! He's gone out of control!" they said.

"What do you mean?"

"We were picking up some unusual communication waves, then Metal Sonic's eyes changed. A sort of…darkness came over him, and he teleported to come destroy you!" Tails exclaimed.

"Uh oh…" Suddenly, Metal Sonic appeared in front of them in his Neo form.

"Sonic! I see you haven't gained all of your abilities! Good. That makes it easier to destroy you!" he said. He charged at Sonic who was deflecting his every blow. King Dedede brought out his hammer, but Metal spun it off.

"Metal! Why are you doing this?!"

"My new master, Naga, has reawakened my desire to be rid of you! And if he wants me to destroy you, so I shall!" he exclaimed, laughing darkly.

"Oh, yeah? Well you have to deal with all of us!" the Brawlers exclaimed. They threw their Bakugan. All eight of them tried to destroy the machine, but his speed quickly outmatched the Bakugan. He kept dodging their attacks. He noticed a clear pipe leading high up into the sky. In two seconds flat, he dove into the lake and did some banging.

"Oh no! If he shatters that water line, it'll cause a two foot flood!" Julio exclaimed. Metal sonic managed to burst it. He then charged at the clear pipe and put a hole in it, even though no one heard it. He grabbed Sonic by his quills and threw him into the pipe. Dan tried to grab him, but he only got the camera.

"Hey! I'm in a pipe! Ha! Looks like your plan failed, Metal! He climbed up the ladder, but Metal shut the lid. "Do you think that'll do anything?" Dan started pointing. Sonic looked down at the ground. The water was seeping into the pipe! Sonic tried desperately to punch open the lid, but no avail. The Brawlers and Smashers tried to open it, but Metal blasted them down.

"I'm glad that the pipe is clear, Sonic! Now, your new friends can watch your demise as you drown in your worst fear! Ha ha ha!" Metal yelled.

"You've gone mad!" Blade Tigrerra exclaimed.

"I know, I can Spin Dash out of here!" Sonic thought. He tried to Spin Dash, but he got stuck. "Oh no…" The water was slowly creeping up. Sonic suddenly felt a jolt of electricity go down his spine. He recognized that feeling. Fear. He hadn't felt that in a long time. 'At this rate, I'll drown in just a few minutes!' He started banging in a panic. 'Stupid Metal Sonic. As soon as I find a way to get out of here…' The name rang in his head. Metal Sonic. Dan had the camera on every second, as a worried Tails and Eggman stared at the screen.

"Come on Sonic! You can do it!" Tails cheered.

"Yeah! Don't let Metal Sonic get rid of you! That's my goal!" Dr. Eggman yelled. They noticed Sonic started growling loudly. His fur was slowly getting darker.

"What's happening to Sonic?!" Dan exclaimed.

"His anger is causing him to absorb the negative energy of the Chaos Emeralds! He's becoming…Dark Super Sonic!" Tails exclaimed. The pupils in his eyes had disappeared. He drew his arm back, and in one punch, busted through the lid. Metal's eyes grew to the size of giant jawbreakers. Sonic charged at Metal and blasted him over and over. On the fifth punch, Metal went flying. Sonic was about to go after him, but his conscience kicked in.

'No! Snap out of it! Being angry never solves anything!' Sonic told himself. He started to calm down and return to normal.

"I will get you for this!" Metal yelled. He disappeared in a portal. The water was pouring out of the pipe and started to flood Julio's front lawn. The smashers, Brawlers, and Julio boarded Marucho's private plane.

"So, where do we go to battle you, Julio?" Pikachu asked.

"I'm not sure."

"I can't believe that Metal's in league with that Naga. He's such a jerk!" Mario growled.

"Hey, Tails. Think you could probably play the recording from when we were in the center?" Pikachu asked.

"Sure. Metal didn't damage that machine. Here goes." He pressed the button. The recording started playing."

"So, when we were in the center, I happened to notice a strange black thing way behind them. Tails, zoom in 30 degrees southwest," Link said. The camera zoomed in and clarified the image. It was a black dragon with a white stomach, and three huge white shapes on his wings.

"I don't recognize that Bakugan at all," Hydranoid said.

"Hey! His mouth is moving a bit! Tails, increase the frequency by 40%." Bowser said. Tails did just that. The dragon's voice was totally clear.

"No! I thought the extra power would speed up the process, not stabilize it! I got to get the Chaos Emeralds out of there!" Naga exclaimed.

"That's the reformed Naga? He looks a lot different. He's mostly black." Drago said. Naga charged at the Chaos Emeralds, but when he hit them, the energy field appeared.

"So, Naga's the one who triggered the energy field. Speaking of Naga, how was he able to communicate with Metal?" Sonic asked.

"Hey! You know how Eggman said we picked up a communication wave? Maybe that was Naga! I got the corrected frequency. Here it is," Tails said.

"Metal Sonic…I am Naga. Hear me! I know your greatest enemy is the one known as Sonic the Hedgehog. He is the greatest threat to my plan of destruction. We both share the same adversary. Metal Sonic, fight Eggman's control over you! Reawaken your desire, and join me, your new master!" Naga roared.

"Grrrr. I hate that Naga!" Wayvern said.

"You know, a lot has happened today. I suggest we find a place to rest, and battle Julio later," Marucho said.

"Later?! But it's only 1:00!" Sonic said.

"True, but like he said, a lot has happened," Alice said. The Brawlers and smashers nodded in complete agreement.

**The Brawlers and smashers have two adversaries to deal with! Naga has gained control of Metal Sonic! The smashers are now in a race to stop the tyranny of the reformed Naga! What will happen next? Be patient.**


	6. Haos Brawl 2

The sun was shining out of the clear windows of Marucho's private jet. The Brawlers were planning some strategies on how to defeat Naga and Metal Sonic. Shun was thinking of evolving his Storm Skyress. Skyress could sense this, but said nothing of it.

"Hey! I got an idea! I know where to go to battle you, Julio!" Lucario said.

"Really? Where?" Julio asked.

"Well, Marucho asked us to battle him next. And since he's an Aquos player, we'll probably be battling a stronger Aquos player," Bowser said.

"Are you saying that we should go to Klaus' mansion?" Julio hypothesized.

"Sure! Why not?" Mario asked. "I heard that there's a killer pasta joint around there!"

"Wait. You want to go to Klaus' mansion just because of the pasta restaurant?" Julio said to Mario.

"Mario's an Italian plumber. Only three things are on his mind. Pasta, pipes, and Peach." Sonic teased.

"Oh yeah? Well, if you don't shut up, I'll take that camera and smash it!" Mario warned.

"If you do, I'll stick the charger rod up somewhere you don't want it to be, plumpy," Sonic teased again.

"How's about I blast you with my fireballs?" Mario yelled.

"Even if you could conjure up a gigantic fireball, I'd just Spin Dash and blow it out like a birthday candle." Sonic blew on his finger. Mario was really starting to get . After what seemed like minutes of intense staring from Mario, Sonic just walked off, unnerved by Mario's slight anger.

"Hey guys, I was wondering. What abilities did you gain?" Alice asked.

"Well, I think I got my inhale move back," Dedede replied.

"I got my laser," Samus added.

"I got my normal eye lasers," R.O.B. replied. After a few minutes, they landed in front of Klaus' mansion. Klaus was waiting outside.

"Hey guys. I was expecting you. Are these the smashers?" Klaus asked.

"Yeah, how'd you know?" Sonic asked.

"I have a bunch of satellites and things that I've been using to monitor your journey. Come on. While you're here, I'll show you my Bakugan collection." Klaus led the smashers and the Brawlers throughout the entire mansion. Everyone admired it just as much as Marucho's skyscraper.

"This is quite an impressive sight, but it's a little old-fashioned for me," Sonic stated.

"You won't feel that way for long!" Klaus said. He led them into a room filled with computers and shelves of Bakugan. The smashers were literally stunned by the sight. The Brawlers had to put them on a dolly to move them. "As you can see here, each Bakugan comes in the six different types. My favorite type is Preyas, being that it's able to change its attribute

"So, wait. You're saying that there other Dragonoids? Then how come I've never seen them?" Dan asked.

"They're really hard to come by."

"Speaking of Preyas, have you managed to finally get six of your own?" Marucho asked.

"Why yes! In fact I did! And, I even have all the forms of Angelo Preyas, Diablo Preyas, and Ultimate Preyas!"

"Wow!"

"So, how many Bakugan do you still need?" Julie asked.

"I only need the soldiers, and all of the Ultimate forms, besides Dragonoid and Hydranoid."

"I don't know about you, but I'm going down to that pasta place. I'm hungry," Mario said. He walked out of the mansion and went to eat. The others went to Klaus' huge field.

"Oh yeah! This is perfect for battling you guys! So, who do I get to pummel?"

"You're the one who's going to get pummeled. And I think it's time we used Link, Pikachu, and Captain Falcon. After that, it'll be Ganondorf, Bowser, and Mewtwo. I'll hold the cards this time," Samus said.

"If I may, I'd like to battle those three after you beat Julio," Alice said.

"Sure thing," they said.

"You ready?" Julio asked.

"Ready!"

"Gate Card, set!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Haos Juggernoid, stand!"

"Link, go for it!"

"Link recognized as Ventus Bakugan at 360 Gs."

"Okay. A pretty good power level." Link said.

"What's the matter? You too scared to attack me?" Julio mocked.

"Don't listen to his trash talk," Runo said.

"Let's see. Ability Card, activate! Gale Boomerang! This card allows Link to nullify your Gate Card!"

"Gate Card nullified."

"Pikachu, go for it!"

"Okay!" He landed near the Juggernoid. "Oooh, a turtle. Soooo scary." Pikachu mocked. Julio growled.

"Pikachu recognized a Haos Bakugan with 430 Gs."

"Gate Card, set! Bakugan, brawl! Tentaclear, stand!"

"Be careful, guys! His Tentaclear's abilities make it to where abilities are cancelled, and you can't use Gate Cards!" Dan yelled.

"Don't worry! I have a plan to get that Tentaclear!" Link said.

"New battle recognized, Pikachu at 430 Gs. Juggernoid at 320 Gs." Pikachu charged at him.

"Not so fast! Gate Card, open! Energy Merge!"

"Pikachu power decrease of 100 Gs. Juggernoid power increase of 100 Gs."

"330 to 420! Oh man! Let's see. Ability Card, activate! Thunder!"

"Juggernoid power decrease of 100 Gs. Pikachu power decrease of 10 Gs. Both powers equalized."

"Bakugan, brawl! Haos Saurus, stand!" Saurus landed on Link's Gate Card.

"Saurus at 340 Gs. Link at 360 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Saurus Glow!"

"Saurus power increase of 50 Gs."

"Now to add to the mix! Mega Flare Blinder!" Julio yelled. Tentaclear's eye shone a bright light that blinded everyone.

"Augh! Gate Card, open!" Samus commanded. The Gate Card didn't open.

"Is that the ability?!" Samus asked.

"Yep…" Marucho replied.

"Well, I know a weakness in that! It may nullify Gate Cards and Ability Cards, but not Special Ability Cards! Ability Card, activate! Triforce Slash!" The Triforce on link's hand started glowing. It trapped Haos Saurus inside.

"Link power increase of 100 Gs." He charged at Saurus.

"Ability Card, activate! Haos Stasis! Since I have three Haos Bakugan, and one of them is Tentaclear, I can return all ability cards I've used to my hand. So, I get Mega Flare Blinder and Saurus Glow back into my arsenal!"

"Too bad you won't be able to use Saurus Glow!" Link shouted. When the light disappeared, Julio noticed that his Saurus was trapped in the Triforce, and Link was charging. He slashed him numerous times, then sent him flying onto Tentaclear's Gate Card.

"Saurus defeated."

"So, let's see here. Who should I destroy next? I know! I'll go after your Tentaclear!" Samus said. "Gate Card, set! Captain Falcon, he's all yours!" Captain Falcon jumped onto his Gate Card.

"Let's see what you're made of!" Captain Falcon daunted.

"Captain Falcon recognized as Pyrus attributed Bakugan with 380 Gs."

"If you were going to attack my Tentaclear, why didn't you go onto my Gate Card?!" Julio yelled. He was starting to sweat a bit.

"It's obvious that the Gate Card you laid down there is a Final Judgment Gate Card. We're not dumb," Captain Falcon explained.

"You think so? Well, you may have figured out what my Gate Card was, but it doesn't matter! Ability Card, activate! Mega Flare Blinder!" Tentaclear's eye blasted another flare.

"Take this! Ability Card, activate! Volt Tackle! With this, Pikachu's Gs go up 50, and he can lower any Bakugan's Gs by 10 for every hit. Plus, he can move to any Gate Card!" Pikachu formed a blue sphere of electricity around him.

"Pikachu power increase of 50 Gs." Pikachu charged at Juggernoid and defeated it with a huge volt. He then went over to Captain Falcon's field. Tentaclear's Mega Flare Blinder wore off.

"Ability Card, activate! Falcon Dive! This allows Captain Falcon to grapple an enemy on an adjacent Gate Card, and that Gate Card is nullified!"

"What?!" Julio exclaimed. Captain Falcon made an explosive entrance and landed on the Gate Card.

"Final battle recognized. Tentaclear at 370 Gs. Captain Falcon at 380 Gs."

"Oh yeah! We're gonna win!" they all cheered.

"You think so, huh? Ability Card, activate! Solar Ray!"

"Tentaclear power increase of 100 Gs."

'I never thought I had to use this one, but…'

"Ha! You're down to only one Ability Card!" Julio mocked.

"Ability Card, activate! Blue Falcon! When this card is played, the opposing Bakugan loses!" Samus said. Captain Falcon punched Tentaclear.

"Come on! Blue Falcon!" Captain Falcon hollered. The Blue Falcon whisked the two into the sky. Tentaclear landed on the ground. Captain Falcon rammed Tentaclear with the Blue Falcon. The battle was over. The Gate Cards returned to the owners. Julio plopped to the floor.

"I can't believe I was bested by beginners!" he whined. He got back up and congratulated them. Pikachu got his Thunder Jolt. Link got his bow back. Captain Falcon regained his trademark Falcon punch.

"You're next, Alice! You'd better be ready!" Bowser said.

"Uh huh!" Alice said.

**Looks like next chapter's battle is going to be INTENSE!!! Just imagine, Bowser and Ganondorf doing their Final Smashes and facing a creature just as big! Hope you're ready!!!**


	7. A Battle of Gigantic Proportions

The bright sun shone intensely upon the huge field behind Klaus' mansion as Bowser, Mewtwo, and Ganondorf we in position for their battle with Alice. They were all ready.

"Okay. I will use Reaper, Alpha Hydranoid, and my Darkus Laserman," Alice said.

"Alright. Sounds fair to us. This time, let's have Link be in charge of the cards," Ganondorf said.

"Let's do this! Gate Card…set!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Reaper, stand!" Alice ordered.

"Mewtwo, go for it!" Link said.

"As you wish."

"Mewtwo recognized as Darkus Bakugan at 550 Gs,"

"What?! No fair! How come he's stronger than us?!" Pikachu and Lucario growled.

"My base stats are much higher than yours. That's why. Our Gs are our HP and attack put together, and you're naturally on lower levels than me," Mewtwo explained.

"New battle recognized. Mewtwo at 550 Gs. Reaper at 370 Gs."

"Gate Card, open! 3rd Judgment! This allows me to send in another Darkus Bakugan into the battle and have them combine their powers! Bakugan, brawl! Alpha Hydranoid, stand!"

"Alpha Hydranoid enters battle at 550 Gs. Combined power level of 920 Gs."

"Ha! Beat that!" Alice said.

"If you insist! Ability Card, activate! Confusion! This card allows me to use the effect of the Gate Card you just used for my gain! So, I bring out Bowser!" Link said. Bowser jumped neat Mewtwo.

"Bowser classified as a Pyrus Bakugan at 370 Gs. Combined power of 920 Gs."

"Gate Card, set! Laserman, stand!" Alice said.

"Gate Card, set! Ability Card, activate! Teleport! This Ability Card moves Mewtwo to a blank Gate Card, such as the one I just threw down." Mewtwo teleported over to the Gate Card. "Gate Card, open! Cheering Battle! This allows me to bring in someone who has the same attribute as Mewtwo! Ganondorf, go onto the Gate Card with Bowser!

"Ganondorf enters battle. Combined power change to 870 Gs."

"Why did you do that?!" Bowser growled. "We're going to lose!"

"No you're not! Ability Card, activate! Giga Bowser!" Link yelled. Bowser was engulfed in lightning. He quickly grew bigger and uglier.

"Bowser power increase of 500 Gs,"

"Okay, that HAS to be an evolution!" Dan hollered.

"No, but I wish it was," Bowser growled.

"Well, take this! Ability Card, activate! Terminal Trident! This card lowers your Bakugan by 300 Gs!"

"Power decrease of 300 Gs. Bowser and Ganondorf now at 1070 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Final Demolition! This increases my Alpha Hydranoid by 100 Gs!"

"Hydranoid and Reaper now at 1020 Gs."

"You're still behind!" they taunted.

"Not…so…fast! I activate my final Ability Card, Destroy Vanish! This drains all of the power of your Bakugan!" Alice said with a smirk. Bowser and Ganondorf were slowly decreasing by 20 Gs every second.

'Oh no! I have to find a good card or their toast! Wait, what's this? Shadow Storm? Mewtwo's Final Smash? Destroys Bakugan on adjacent Gate Card, and stops power decrease of ally Bakugan! Perfect!'

"Bowser and Ganondorf now at 820 Gs."

"Okay, you two! Attack!" Alice commanded. Hydranoid and Reaper ran toward Bowser and Ganondorf.

"Ability Card, activate! Shadow Storm!" Link yelled. Mewtwo jumped into the air and fired a black laser that hit Alice's Laserman. It was immediately destroyed. The laser moved over and engulfed Bowser and Ganondorf. Their power stopped decreasing.

"Giga Bowser and Ganondorf at 750 Gs. Hydranoid and Reaper at 1020 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Beast Ganon!" Link yelled. Ganondorf transformed into Beast Ganon.

"Ganondorf power increase of 600 Gs. Combined power of 1350 Gs."

"Whoa. Didn't see that coming." Ganon roared and paralyzed Alpha Hydranoid. Giga Bowser blasted a flamethrower at Reaper. Ganon rammed Hydranoid and the two were defeated. Alice had lost.

"That was the most incredible battle I ever had! I haven't had this much fun in years!" Alice cheered.

"That was a great battle, Alice!" Link said. The three characters regained their B moves.

"That battle was kinda short, wasn't it?" Bowser said. Mario returned from his feast.

"I saw the whole thing from the balcony! That was a big battle!" Mario said. He had marinara sauce on his face from his pasta meal. The smashers and Brawlers sat in Klaus' huge dining room and ate. Mario wasn't hungry. They finished a huge gourmet meal, and had a huge chat with Klaus. Eventually, it was three o' clock.

**All of the smashers have regained their B moves. Look like they will be facing Marucho and Klaus next. Keep waiting, because Chapter 7 is on the way! **


	8. Raging Waves

"So, have you decided you you're going to use?" Marucho asked.

"Well, there's NO way I'm going against an Aquos player!" Sonic replied.

"I thought you were a hedgehog, not a big, fat, yellow chicken. Bawk, bawk, bagaw!" Mario taunted.

"I dare you to say that again, omofatso-san," Sonic teased back.

"Don't you make me look like a sumo wrestler!" Mario growled back.

"Hold on, you guys. I want to join in this battle. I think it's high time Skyress evolved," Shun interrupted.

"Okay! Sure!" they said.

"Let's see. Shun, since were better at dealing with every attribute, do you think we could use Skyress and evolve her for you?" Bowser asked.

"If its okay with Skyress, then yes."

"It's fine with me, Shun. I could tell you were thinking of evolving me."

"Sp, who's going to be used?" Marucho asked.

"I'll be in control of the cards. As for who will be played along with Skyress, I choose Meta-Knight and Lucario," Bowser explained.

"Why are we getting paired up again?" Lucario asked.

"Ganondorf is the only Darkus type left, and he just battled. I'm giving him a break."

"I see."

"Let's do this! Marucho said.

"Gate Card, set!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Limulus, stand!"

"Bakugan, Brawl! Storm Skyress, stand!"

"Gate card, open! Trade Off!"

"Not so fast! Ability Card, activate! Air Battle! This card cancels the Gate Card our Bakugan are on, and allows it to move anywhere. But since there are only two Bakugan, it's pointless to move. Looks like this battle is ours. Skyress, attack!" Clouds covered the field, and the two took off into the sky.

"Ability Card, activate! Dive Mirage!" Limulus dove into the clouds and disappeared to the different Gate Card.

"Ha! You landed on our Gate Card! Gate Card, open! Androstasis! This makes your Limulus return to you!" Limulus returned to Marucho.

"Bakugan, Brawl! Limulus, stand! Ability Card, activate! Depth Tornado! This card increases my Aquos Bakugan by 100!"

"Limulus now at 440 Gs. Skyress at 450 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Abyss Ruler! This brings up Limulus by another 100 Gs!"

"Limulus now at 540 Gs."

"We're not done yet! Ability Card, activate! Destruction Meteor Storm!"

"Skyress power increase to 550 Gs."

"Oh no! I don't have another good Ability Card!" Skyress blasted a huge gust of wind and knocked Limulus out. Skyress started glowing.

"Skyress is…evolving!" Shun gasped.

"I thought it would take more effort than that. Unless…maybe all of the Bakugan were increasing their HSP while in Vestroia, and Skyress just needed one more battle." Skyress started to grow. She got new armor on her body. Her beak was tipped with green, steel like plating. There were energy lines on her gargantuan, feathered wings. Her talons were shining and golden. She was now Ultimate Skyress.

"Hey! Look at this!" Bowser said. The Destruction Meteor Storm changed. "Tornado Destruction Apocalypse? If you have three Bakugan on the field, and one of them is a Ventus Ultimate Skyress, you automatically win the whole battle. Cool! Destructive!"

"Hey! How come Ultimate Preyas didn't get a new card?" Marucho asked.

"He did. You never looked at it. It's the Giant Whirlpool Ability Card. If you have three Aquos Bakugan, and one of them is Ultimate Preyas, all Bakugan on adjacent Gate Cards are lowered to 50 Gs," Joe replied.

"Wow!" Ultimate Skyress returned to Shun. Suddenly, the Bakupod showed that Bowser had two dots, but it didn't count as a loss.

"Okay, Marucho. We each have two Bakugan, and used one Gate Card each. I used two Ability Cards, and you used three of them. You only have a few left. Quite the predicament, eh?"

"I can still win this! Gate Card, set! Bakugan, brawl! Terrorclaw, stand!"

"Lucario, go!"

"Lucario at 400 Gs. Terrorclaw at 360 Gs."

"Okay, let's do this! Lucario, attack!"

"Ability Card, activate! Positive Delta! I'm sure you know what this does!"

"Lucario power decrease to 200 Gs."

"Oh yeah? Ability Card, activate! Force Palm!"

"Ability Counter, activate! Water Refrain! Now to make sure your power can't increase enough, Ability Card, activate! Wall Burst!"

"Lucario power decrease of 100 Gs." Suddenly, Lucario was white. He shrunk down.

"What the?!" Lucario yelled. He had longer ears, and he was a lot shorter. "I've devolved?!"

"Awwwww…so cute…" Runo and Julie sighed. He was now Riolu.

"Ha! This is perfect! Terrorclaw, attack!"

"Ability Card, activate! Aura Sphere! The card normally increases Lucario by 200 Gs, but for every 100 Gs he's decreased, its power doubles!"

"Riolu power increase of 800 Gs." He turned back into Lucario.

"Oh no! Limulus! Augh…Gate Card, open! Bio Hazard!"

"Lucario power decrease of 800 Gs." And, back to Riolu.

"Hold it! My ability Card is useable again! Ability Card, activate! Force Palm! Link Mario's Cape ability and Mewtwo's Confusion, it allows me to use the effect of your Gate Card! So, your last move is cancelled!"

"Riolu back to 900 Gs." And once again, he re-evolved.

"Lucario, sic 'em boy!" Lucario gave a swift left hook and defeated Terrorclaw.

"Oh, man! I'm down to only one Bakugan!"

"And I still have Lucario and Ganondorf. However, since Lucario already battled, he's just a backup."

"Let's go!"

"Gate Card, set! Ganondorf, hit it!"

"Raaaah! I'm ready for action!"

"Bakugan Brawl! Preyas, stand!"

"Ultimate Preyas enters battle at 550 Gs."

"550 to 500. This could be fun. Ability Card, activate! Aquos and Darkus correlation!"

"Ganondorf power increase of 100 Gs."

"Take this! Ability Card, activate! Aqua Absorption! This increases Preyas' Gs by the combined amount of all the defeated Aquos Bakugan!"

"Preyas power increase of 360 Gs. Second power increase of 340 Gs. Total power level of 1250 Gs."

"Hold it! Ability Card, activate! Warlock Punch! This card makes it to where Ganondorf's base power is tripled if there's a Bakugan over 1000 Gs!"

"Ganondorf power increase of 1000 Gs."

"Oh yeah! 1600 to 1250! Ganondorf, attack!" Ganondorf charged at Ultimate Preyas and defeated him. The Gate Cards returned.

"You know, I think we should change our little approach just a little bit," Tails said.

"How so, Tails?"

"You see, you all need to regain your moves. How about instead of battling three on three, each match is composed of 3 1 on 1 battles? That way it's fair!" Tails said.

"Genius, dude!" Sonic replied. Tails blushed.

"Now it's your turn, Klaus!" Lucario said.

"So, who has the cards?"

"Let's see…first Mario, then Sonic, then Mewtwo, then Samus, then Link, then Bowser…I will!" Lucario said.

"All right, who will I battle?"

"I'll battle Sirenoid!" Kirby said.

"I want to take care of his Aquos Wormquake," Samus said.

"And I will do battle with with his Stinglash," Pikachu said.

"All right! Let's go!"

"Gate Card, set! Bakugan, brawl! Sirenoid, stand!"

"Gate Card, set! Kirby, go! Kirby, inhale Sirenoid!"

"That only works when two Bakugan are on the same Gate Card!" Klaus said. To his surprise, his Sirenoid was drawn to Kirby's Gate Card.

"Ha! Inhale has two effects! If two Bakugan are on Kirby's Gate Card, Kirby becomes that type and gains their abilities. If the other Bakugan is on the other Gate Card, that Bakugan is drawn to Kirby! Take that Klaus von Stupidstein!"

"What'd you call me?"

"Gate Card, open! Positive Delta! This decreases your little Sirenoid by 200 Gs!"

"Oh yeah? Well it won't matter! Ability Card, activate! Anthemusa! Once I play this card, I win the round!" Sirenoid was playing her harp. Kirby was slowly being pulled toward it.

"Item Card, activate! Microphone!" A microphone appeared in front of Kirby. "Kirby, inhale the microphone and transform into Mike Kirby!" Kirby inhaled the microphone. He had earmuffs over his ears. "Ha! Mike Kirby isn't affected by any Ability Cards of yours! Kirby, attack!" Kirby pulverized Sirenoid and won the battle.

"All right! I won! The earmuffs disappeared, and Kirby went back to the others.

"Okay! Gate Card, set! Bakugan, Brawl! Wormquake, stand!"

"Samus, go!"

"New battle recognized."

"It's 410 Gs to 340 Gs. Samus is going to win for sure!" Sonic said happily.

"I don't know, Sonic. Klaus may have something up his sleeve," shun responded.

"Gate Card, open! Quicksand Freeze!" Klaus said. Samus sent Wormquake flying. She suddenly found herself stuck inside in pool of quicksand. "Ha! Got you! Bakugan, Brawl! Stinglash, stand!"

"Gate Card, set! Pikachu, go!" Pikachu landed on the Gate Card. It was he, Samus, and Stinglash. It all came down to this. "Ability Card, activate! Quick Attack! This allows us to allow Pikachu to go to another Gate Card, activate my Gate Card's ability on that card, and return to my Gate Card!" Pikachu charged over, and in a streak of light he went over to Stinglash. "Gate Card, open! Androstasis! The Gate Card Pikachu was on turned into a rainbow color, and the energy went over to the Quicksand Freeze card. Pikachu returned to the Gate Card. Samus and Stinglash returned to Bowser and Klaus.

"Well, I didn't expect that. Bakugan, brawl! Stinglash, stand!"

"Pikachu, go!"

"Final battle recognized. Pikachu at 430 Gs. Stinglash at 330 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Poison Fang!"

"50 Gs transferred from Pikachu to Stinglash."

"They're both at 380 Gs. Either of them needs to pull out an Ability Card."

"Ability Card, activate! Aquos and Haos Abridged Relation! If I have an Aquos against a Haos Bakugan, the Haos Bakugan is decreased to 50 Gs!"

"Pikachu power decrease. Commencing devolution to Pichu." Pikachu devolved.

"Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gosh! Pichu is so adorable!" Runo and Julie squealed.

"Oh yeah? Haos and Aquos Abridged Relation! Now your Stinglash is decreased to 50 Gs!"

"Stinglash power reduction."

"Now for the finish! Ability Card, activate! Thunder! This increases Pichu's Gs by 100!"

"Pichu power increase. Evolving back to Pikachu." Pichu re-evolved and blasted Stinglash.

"I can't believe I was beaten."

"Oh yeah! We won! Now we regain our Side B moves." the smashers said. Indeed, they did.

"Hey guys, I was wondering something. It's about you, Sonic," Joe said.

"Yeah, what about?"

"Remember how you regained your super speed, obviously?"

"Actually, Sonic had his super speed all along, but thought he couldn't use it," Tails explained.

"Okay, but then there's that Spin Dash. All of you regained your B moves after your first victory, but Sonic's B move is his Homing Attack. Why did he regain his side B move first?"

"My guess is the fact that he's the only anthropomorphic creature that doesn't have elemental powers like Pokemon do."

"Oh, I see. And also, how come Sonic was able to go into Dark Super Sonic if its not a SSBB move?" Joe asked.

"It's probably because our worlds are fusing."

"That does make sense. Anyway, how come you never used your Super Sonic Ability Card?"

"Until after that incident, I didn't know I could sense the radiation of the Chaos Emeralds."

"Speaking of the Chaos Emeralds, Knuckles was able to send the Master Emerald into the center and make the Super Emeralds. So, you can go into Hyper Sonic if you want."

"Awesome! So, it's about 4 o' clock, we've all battled a bit…I'd say it's time to call it a day."

"Agreed. Let's go back to my place. You can battle Billy and me tomorrow!" Julie said.

"Good idea!" the smashers said. They boarded the plane, ready for their next quest.

**So, the smashers are now one step closer to regaining the abilities. With the worlds combining, the smashers are now able to regain their other abilities. What will happen next chapter? The answer is just around our corner.**


	9. A QuakeUp of a Brawl!

The calm moon and cloudless skies were a serene picture for the smashers, who were camping out at Bakugan Valley.

"Isn't the night sky amazing?" Julie sighed.

"Yeah. It is," Sonic replied.

"You know, it's a wonder that you haven't gone all werehog on us," Ganondorf stated.

"Don't you even bring that up. The last thing I want is to get all hairy."

"How did you become werehog the last time?"

"I was facing Eggman, and I tried to go Super Sonic. However, a blast of energy caused the power to become imbalanced, and I turned into the werehog."

"Strange. You know, I've been wondering something. You turn into Super Sonic by absorbing positive chaos, but go dark when you absorb the negative. What would happen if you absorbed both sides like Emerl did?" Tails asked.

"No clue. I might just go half and half."

"You know what would be cool? If you went Dark Hyper Sonic!"

"That wouldn't be cool. I'd attack everything!"

"Good point."

"So, Julie, why is this place called Bakugan Valley?" Link asked.

"This valley has some connection to Vestroia. Plus, you can find a lot of Bakugan here."

"Cool. You know what would be awesome? If a few of us had our own Bakugan," Sonic said.

"Yeah. Hey, look over there," Joe said. Drago and Wayvern were walking off.

"Don't go too far now!" Dan teased. Drago and Wayvern blushed as they rolled off the cliff.

"Those two," Joe said.

"Hey, Joe, why haven't you tried to evolve Wayvern? She's a new Bakugan now, so she must have two more evolved forms."

"Actually, she is an Ultimate Bakugan. The only reason she couldn't truly contain it was because she was a white one."

"I think pretty soon I'm going to evolve Gorem, too."

"You know, we didn't get to battle Ultimate Tigrerra and Supreme Drago yet," Mario said.

"I know, I haven't even thought about evolving her."

"I don't think any of you could beat Supreme Drago."

"You'd be surprised, Dan. I think Sonic could beat him," Shun replied.

"Sonic? He'd have to have a good trump card to beat me." Drago and Wayvern returned suddenly.

"Joe…something's happening to my body…" Wayvern groaned.

"It's okay, Wayvern. I'm here."

"I think that something is trying to contact me."

"Wayyyyverrrrrrn." the voice said.

"Huh?"

"Wayvern. It is me. Apollonir."

"Apollonir?" Wayvern asked.

"Huh? Apollonir, the Pyrus soldier?" Dan asked.

"Yes," Wayvern answered.

"Wayvern. I need you to pass a message to the smashers. As soon as they regain all of their smash abilities, they need to come here to the Doom Dimension and battle us." Wayvern seemed to recover.

"Well? What did he say?"

"He wants all of the smashers to meet them in the Doom Dimension after they regain their smash abilities."

"Huh?!" everyone yelled.

"The Doom Dimension? How could we get there?" Mario pondered.

"I have my grandfather's dimensional transport device," Alice explained.

"So, let's see. We each have to win a total of five battles. Basically, we're bound to repeat a lot of battles," Samus concluded.

"I guess so. But there are a lot of people out there, Samus."

"I know that, Runo, but still…"

"Hey, don't worry. Julie, since they're battling you next, and since they need to battle us, how about you and I have a quick battle, old version style?"

"Okay! Bakugan! Field, open!"

"Field, open!" A rainbow disk appeared, and the smashers felt time stop. All of a sudden, it was over.

"So, who won? I didn't see a thing!" Tails said.

"It was a draw, but look!" Runo said. Tigrerra and Gorem went to normal size. Tigrerra was glowing yellow, and Gorem was encased in rock. When they stopped, they were much bigger. Tigrerra had two scythes on her arms, and there were energy lines on them. Her claws were bronze, and her fangs were huge. Gorem had more armor, and He had curved spikes. He had a shield on each arm, and there were energy lines on his back. A gold jewel was on his chest.

"So, these are our ultimate forms. Nice," Gorem replied.

"Indeed. And I cannot wait to evolve either," Reaper stated.

"I'll battle you twice tomorrow, Reaper. That way, you can evolve," Wayvern offered.

"You're on."

"Hey! I got an awesome idea! Since I'm ahead of Billy, why don't you battle him first, then battle me?"

"That sounds good. We could have a night battle! I wonder when he'll show up," Link said.

"Right now!" said a voice from afar. It was Billy, jumping across the crevices.

"Hey, Billy!" Julie yelled.

"Hey guys! How are you?"

"Good!"

"So, these are the smashers I was told about. Which of you three are going to battle me?"

"We haven't decided yet," Lucario replied.

"I'm in reserves for Ultimate Skyress," Sonic told him.

"I want to be in control of the cards this time!" Pikachu chirped.

"Sure! Can I decide who I want to battle?"

"Okay, Billy. Sure!"

"Okay… how about Mario, Link, and Bowser?" Billy asked.

"Being on the same team is quite ironic, huh?" Mario asked Bowser.

"You aren't kidding."

"Let's do this! Gate Card, set!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Robotallion, stand!"

"So it's his Robotallion, huh? Okay! Link! Go for it!"

"Ha! Gate Card, open!"

"Robotallion power increase."

"He's at 430 Gs! I hope Pikachu has some trick up his sleeve!" Sonic said.

"Link! Use your Hero's Bow!"

"Link power increase of 50 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Bomb!"

"Robotallion power decrease of 20 Gs."

"They're tied!" The two charged. They both were sent back.

"Our first draw. Let's go again! Link, hit it!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Robotallion, stand! Ability Card, activate! Robotallion Enforcement!"

"Robotallion power increase of 50 Gs."

"480 to 360. Ouch," Pikachu said. Link pulled out his Hero's Bow.

"Link power increase."

"Ability Card, activate! Ventus and Subterra abridged relation!"

"Robotallion dramatic power decrease." Link slashed Billy's Robotallion with his sword. He was instantly KO'd.

"You got lucky there. Gate Card, set! Bakugan, brawl! Ratteloid, stand!"

"Mario, go for it! Ability Card, activate! Pyrus and Subterra Co-relation!"

"Mario power increase."

"Ooh. 430 to 300," Sonic said.

"Ability Card, activate! Poison Fang!"

"Ratteloid power increase of 50 Gs. Mario power decrease by same amount."

"It's still 380 to 350!"

"Gate Card, open! Grand Spirit!"

"Ratteloid power increase of 50 Gs."

"Ha! Beat that!"

"Ability Card, activate! Cape!"

"Mario power increase of 50 Gs." Mario went over and blasted a fireball at Ratteloid. The second battle was over.

"Looks like it's down to Cycloid and Bowser. Let's do this! Gate Card, set! Bowser, hit it!"

"New battle recognized."

"They're both tied!"

"Gate Card, open!"

"Ability Card, activate! Left Giganti!"

"Gate Card cancelled."

"Ability Card, activate! Right Giganti!"

"Cycloid power increase of 100 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Flying Fortress!"

"Bowser power increase of 100 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Stare Down!"

"Bowser power decrease."

"Oh yeah? Well I'll use my Fire Breath!"

"Bowser power increase of 50 Gs." Cycloid was burned by Bowser's powerful attack. The battle was done with.

"Good game!" Billy replied.

"Yeah. That was fun." Bowser, Mario, and link regained their side B moves.

"So, who's left until everybody regains their side B moves?" Julie asked.

"There are only six left. And only five of them will get their side B moves back. Sonic will gain a different move back," tails said.

"Who will be facing me tomorrow?" Julie asked.

"Well, since Sonic will face Shun, there's any combination of Mewtwo, Ganondorf, R.O.B., Captain Falcon, and King Dedede," Mario said.

"I'll pick…Mewtwo, R.O.B, and Captain Falcon."

"Okay, then that means Shun will face Sonic, Ganondorf, and King Dedede."

"Sounds fine with me. Maybe I'll get to see Super Sonic in action," Shun said. Ultimate Skyress was really excited.

"Okay guys, good night. See you in the morning," Julie said. Billy went home. The smashers and Brawlers went to sleep.

Later that morning…

"'Yawn'. Good morning everyone!" Dan said.

"Good morning, Dan," Tails said. The gang woke up and ate a hearty breakfast. Kato was sleeping inside the plane. Julie, Mewtwo, R.O.B., and Captain Falcon were in position for the next battle. Only one more after this, and everybody would regain their side B moves, and Sonic would get his Homing Attack.

"Okay guys! You ready?"

"Oh yeah! We're more than ready! Meta-Knight, you get to use the cards," Captain Falcon replied.

"Very well."

"Gate Card, set!" they both said.

"Bakugan, brawl! Tuskor, stand!"

"Mewtwo, go!"

"Oh man! Mewtwo's at 550 Gs! He's too strong for Tuskor! Let's see…Ability Card, activate! Desert Thunder!"

"Tuskor power increase."

"Ability Card, activate! Whirlwind!"

"Mewtwo power decrease."

"Gate Card, open! Energy Merge!"

"100 Gs transferred from Tuskor to Mewtwo." Mewtwo charged up his Shadow Ball. "Mewtwo power increase. The Shadow blasted Tuskor.

"Yeah!" Dan cheered.

"Ready to go again?" Meta Knight asked.

"Bakugan, brawl! Warius, stand!"

"R.O.B, go for it!"

"Gate Card, open! Super Pyrus!"

"Power levels switched."

"Uh oh. R.O.B.! Use your Robo Beam!"

"R.O.B. power increase of 100 Gs."

"Ability card, activate! Whirlwind!"

"R.O.B power decrease of 100 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Earth Power!"

"R.O.B power increase."

"Now to finish it! Wall Burst!"

"Warius power decrease."

"Blast him!" R.O.B. sent Julie's Warius flying.

"Oh no! I lost again!" Julie exclaimed. "Gorem, it's all on you!"

"I'll do my best."

"Gate Card, set! Captain Falcon, go!"

"Bakugan…brawl! Gorem, attack!" Julie ordered. Ultimate Gorem knocked CF in the noggin. "Gorem, stand!" As Ultimate Gorem stood, CF started to tremble.

"New battle recognized. Captain Falcon at 380 Gs. Gorem at 550 Gs."

"Hooooooly cow. That is one big Bakugan."

"Gate Card, open! Big Blue! This card pumps Captain Falcon's points by the amount of your Bakugan!"

"Captain Falcon power increase of 550 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Colossal Impact! This card lowers your Bakugan's Gs by 300, and smashes your Gate Card!"

"Captain Falcon power decrease of 850 Gs."

"Now he's at 80 Gs!" Meta Knight exclaimed. "Ability Card, activate! Falcon Kick!"

"Captain Falcon power increase of 300 Gs. Gorem power decrease of same amount."

"Now CF is 100 Gs ahead!"

"Not for long! Ability Card, activate! Sandstorm!"

"Gorem power increase of 100 Gs." Captain Falcon drew his arm back.

"Falcon…Punch!" CF yelled.

"Captain Falcon power increase of 50 Gs." CF's fist went ablaze and became a phoenix. Ultimate Gorem was defeated.

"Amazing! I never thought you could take down such a powerful Bakugan!" Julie complimented.

"Thanks. Just think. After lunch will be our first Ventus battle," Sonic said. Shun stared and smirked at them with anticipation. Sonic, Ganondorf, and King Dedede did the same.

**Almost all of the smashers have regained their side B moves. And now, a new journey awaits them. The six legendary soldiers have challenged them for after they regain all five of their smash moves. What new adventure will await them? Find out…in Chapter 10.**


	10. Brawl in the Air!

It was bright and hot in Bakugan Valley. The gang was enjoying Kato's gourmet luncheon. Runo was chowing down on liver kabobs. Dan was munching on loin tips. Sonic was chowing down on more chili dogs. Kirby was snacking on snack cakes.

"What a junk food junkie," Dan said with his mouth full.

"At least he has manners!" Runo criticized.

"I can't help it. I guess mom never taught me better," Dan said.

"I love cake!" Kirby said while gnarfing down every snack cake in the pantry.

"How can you love something if you never even taste it?" Link asked.

"'Cuz I actually do taste it. Duh."

"How?"

"I do have a tongue you know." Mario was eating a plate of Chicken Alfredo.

"That Kato makes a mean pasta dish."

"Yeah! And he makes vegetables taste good!" Marucho added. He was eating a salad with croutons, bacon bits, broccoli, carrots, and cheese. He devoured it heartily. Shun was just eating at small piece of steak. He was too antsy for his battle with Sonic, Ganondorf, and King Dedede. They were excited as well. Sonic kept glaring and smirking, as if he was mocking him. Shun knew that Sonic was all too eager.

"I take it that you want wait until after lunch."

"You know it. And just wait until I go Super Sonic on your butt."

"I can't wait. Say, how about we do this in a unique way?"

"How unique?"

"We do this in the air."

"Awesome!"

"Hey guys, before we do this, I need to show you something," Joe said. He was typing on his laptop. "I just made a Smashers branch of the Bakugan website, and by doing some research, I've found out something. You know that Jump Ability Card you have? Well, if you use it, the other abilities become Fusion Ability Cards!"

"Say what?" Sonic said.

"Like with you, Sonic. If you use your Spring Jump in conjunction with Jump, it not only enables you to avoid getting hit, but it also causes the opposing Bakugan to lose 50 Gs!"

"Cool! That jump could come in handy!" Sonic said.

"You ready?" Shun asked.

"Yeah!" Sonic said. Kato took off vertically. They jumped out of the helicopter. As they were falling, Dan threw Drago. Drago went to his normal size. Sonic, Ganondorf, and King Dedede landed on his head. Skyress came out and Shun stood on her head. The others watched patiently.

"So! Have you decided who will hold the cards?" Shun asked.

"Yeah! Hey, Kirby! Get down here!" Sonic said. He gave Kirby the cards.

"Let's go! Gate Card, set!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Monarus, stand!" Monarus landed on Shun's card.

"Oooh! Pretty butterfly lady!" Kirby said. "Okay! Ganondorf, hit it!" Ganondorf jumped off Drago onto Shun's Gate Card.

"Gate Card, open! Tornado Zone!"

"Dang! There are a heck of a lot more Gate Cards! I wonder what that does," Dan said.

"Monarus power increase of 200 Gs."

"He's 10 Gs ahead! Ability Card, activate! Flame Choke! With this, Ganondorf lowers your Bakugan's Gs by 40!"

"Monarus power decrease."

"Ability Card, activate! Blow Away!"

"I think you forget! Ganondorf, along with King Dedede and Bowser, is a heavyweight character! And heavyweight characters aren't affected by Ventus abilities that cause them to move to a different Gate Card! Now, you're wide open!" Kirby said. Ganondorf gave a powerful punch to Monarus. "Bye bye, fairy!"

"Ugh! You're good, but you won't beat me! Bakugan, brawl! Ravenoid, stand!"

"King Dedede, go!" King Dedede landed on Kirby's Gate Card.

"Ability Card, activate! Revive!" Monarus was able to be used again. Ability Card, activate! Crossing Winds! This card allows me to bring out another Ventus Bakugan! Bakugan, brawl! Skyress, stand!"

"Oh yeah? Gate Card, open! Additional Task! This forces your Skyress to return to you!" Shun caught Skyress.

"Grrrr."

"Now it's only King Dedede and Ravenoid for now!"

"Ability Card, activate! Jump!" King Dedede jumped up five times from his floating ability. "Ability Card, activate! Super Dedede Jump!" King Dedede took off like a rocket, and came crashing down. Ravenoid was squashed.

"Darn it!"

"Let's go again! Gate Card, set! Ganondorf, go!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Monarus, stand!"

"And we meet again, Monarus."

"Ability Card, activate! Crossing Winds! Bakugan, Brawl! Skyress, stand!" Skyress flew onto the Gate Card with Shun still on her.

"Ability Card, activate! Darkus and Ventus Gravitation! If you have two Bakugan on the field, and I have a Darkus Bakugan on the field, I can bring in a Ventus Bakugan! Sonic, go!"

"So, we both have two Bakugan on the field! Looks like it'll be two on two!"

"No it won't! Gate card, open! Barrier! This card separates the Bakugan to prevent power combination! So now, it's two battles on one Gate Card!"

"Grrrrrrr…. This battle is far from over! Pure Wind! This card allows me to bring in a defeated Bakugan if I have a Ventus Bakugan on the field! Bakugan, brawl! Ravenoid, stand!"

"Oh no! He has all three Bakugan! That means…"

"That's right! Ability Card, activate! Tornado Destruction Apocalypse!"

The three Bakugan came together and blasted a huge energy wave at them. One was also heading for King Dedede.

"Hang on! I got a good one! Ability Card, activate! Double Dimension! If I have a Darkus Bakugan on the field, your Ability Card is cancelled!" Kirby said.

"Double Dimension?! That's a card Alice had as Masquerade!" shun said.

"Wow! Cool!" The energy wave dissipated. "Now, let's do this! Ability Card, activate! Interceptor! King Dedede, go!" The barrier also separated King Dedede from Sonic and Ganondorf, and Ravenoid from Skyress and Monarus.

"Three battles, one Gate Card, it all comes down to strategy! Time to beat that Skyress! Ability Card, activate! Super….Sonic!" Seven small spheres of energy went around Sonic.

"Now I'll show you! HaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAA!" Sonic turned into Super Sonic.

"When the Card Super Sonic is played, Sonic gains 25 Gs every second!"

"Sonic major power increase."

"Just think. A few more seconds, and Sonic will be…well what do you know, he already is!" Shun looked at his Bakupod. Sonic was at 590, and increasing. Sonic charged at Ultimate Skyress. She was sent flying. Shun quickly jumped on the Gate Card. Skyress recovered, and Shun got back on her.

"Now, it's Ganondorf to Monarus, and Dedede to Ravenoid. Go get 'em!" Shun was out of Ability Cards. The other two were defeated. The Gate Cards returned. The smashers and Shun went back onto the helicopter. Skyress returned to Shun, and Drago returned to Dan.

"That…was the longest battle I ever had," Shun said.

"And it was fun! I wonder what move I've gained," Sonic said. He concentrated. He found himself spinning in the air, then he zoomed toward a foam target. "Awesome! I regained my B move! I got Homing Attack back!"

"I got my ability to summon my Waddle Dees!"

"Looks like I got my Flame Choke!"

"Alright! All of us have our side B moves!" they cheered.

"So, who's next?" Mario asked.

"I recommend we find Komba. He's another Ventus player," Shun said.

"Cool! How many people haven't held the cards?" Tails asked. Ganondorf, Captain Falcon, King Dedede, and R.O.B. raised their hands. "Okay, how about…Ganondorf! You hold the cards when we face Komba!"

"Yes!"

"So, where is this Komba character?" Link asked.

"He's nearby. Kota, set the helicopter down over there in the southwest corner of Bakugan Valley."

"On it, sir." Kota lowered the helicopter. Komba was waiting for them.

"Hey, Shun! You ready to battle?" Komba said.

"No, not me. Them." Shun pointed to the smashers.

"Oh. So, which of you three will I battle?"

"I'll be holding the cards. As for who will battle you, I select Mario, Captain Falcon, and Samus."

"Let's do this! Komba said. "I recommend to make it more fun, we do this the way I'm familiar with!"

"Um…okay." The three smashers and Komba jumped high into the air.

"Bakugan! Field, open!" they both said. The six elements appeared below them, and they were engulfed in a rainbow sphere.

"So this is what the old fashion way was like…" Ganondorf said in awe.

"Yep! Let's go!"

"Gate Card, set!"

"Bakugan, brawl! El Condor, stand!"

"A Ventus El Condor, huh? Okay. Mario, go!" They both landed on Mario's Card.

"Let's go! Gate Card, open! Character!"

"Mario power increase detected."

"There's no way that'll work! Ability Card, activate! Hot Blast!"

"Mario power decrease of 100 Gs."

"It's still 530 to 340!" Ganondorf said.

"Think you're pretty funny huh? Well take this! Ability Card, activate! Blow Away! This'll send your little Mario packing!"

"Hmph. Do you honestly think that that will give you an opening? As if! Ability Card, activate! Pyrus gravitation! This allows me to bring in a Pyrus, Ventus or Subterra Bakugan in, and forces you to bring in one as well!"

"Fine by me! Bakugan, brawl! Bee Striker, stand!"

"Captain Falcon, get in there!"

"Ha! Got you! Ability Card, activate! Blow Away!" Captain Falcon landed on top of Mario.

"Coward!" Ganondorf yelled.

"Think so? Gate Card, open! Mind Ghost!"

"Oh, so that's what his plan was…" Mario said.

"Mario, use your Cape and redirect the Gate Card!" Mario pulled out his trusty cape. Then, with one swish of the yellow fabric, the energy of the Mind Ghost card was sent at Bee Striker and El Condor!

"No way!!!!" Komba hollered. His El Condor and Bee Striker were knocked out cold.

"Put me in, Komba!" his Harpus said.

"Are you sure?"

"Trust me!"

"Okay! Gate Card, set! Bakugan, brawl! Harpus, stand!" His Harpus laughed with a nasal voice.

"Okay! Samus, go for it!"

"New battle commenced. Samus at 410 Gs. Harpus at 370 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Feather Storm!"

"Harpus power increase." Samus put out her right arm, and held it with her left. A whitish-blue sphere came from it. "Samus power increase detected." As it charged, the higher her Gs were.

"Is this some trick?" Komba yelled as he jerked back.

"No! That's her Charge Beam!" Ganondorf said in shock. No one suspected it.

"Samus, you are so sneaky," Mario said. Her Gs increased by 100. She shot the ball, and it hit Harpus. The battle was over much too quickly.

"No way. I lost that easily?!" Komba said. They all landed safely on the ground. Mario regained his Super Jump Punch, CF got his Falcon Dive back, and Samus got her Screw Attack back.

"Alright, Reaper. Now it's our turn!" Wayvern said.

"Be sure to give it your all!" Reaper said.

"You can count on it!"

"Ready, Alice?"

"Ready, Joe!"

"Gate Card, set!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Reaper, stand!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Wayvern, stand!"

"Reaper at 370 Gs. Wayvern at 550 Gs."

"They landed on different cards! We can't battle like this!

"Well I can! Ability Card, activate! Chaos of Darkness! This allows me to attack any Bakugan with my Darkus Bakugan!"

"You forget! Wayvern's stronger!"

"Not for long! Ability Card, activate! Pyrus and Darkus Vertical Relation!"

"Reaper power increase of 100 Gs."

"Wayvern's still ahead, Alice!"

"Ability Card, activate! Spice Slayer! This steals 100 Gs from your Bakugan and adds it to mine!"

"Wayvern now at 450 Gs. Reaper at 570 Gs."

"Ha! You can't win! Big Bang Blaze!"

"Ability Card cancelled."

"Gate Card, open! Joker's Wild!"

"Oh no!"

"That's right! I win!" Alice said. Wayvern was blasted back to Joe. Reaper started to become engulfed in black smoke. A second scythe appeared in his hand. His wings were even bigger, and his horns were more yellow, and curved in a funky way. There was a spike traveling across the top of each wing.

"I feel so alive!" Reaper said.

"Looks like you're now Darkus Sickle Reaper!" Alice said.

"Time to brawl again, Alice! And this time, we'll do it the old way!"

"You're on!"

"Field, open!" Again, time stopped to the smashers' disapproval.

"So who won?" Sonic asked.

"I did! Again! Alice exclaimed. Reaper returned to normal size. He had even bigger wings, and a bigger body. His scythes were now black, and an amethyst was on his skeleton-like chest. He was now Ultimate Reaper. Dan just frowned. "What's wrong, Dan?"

"Oh nothing. I'm just…so jealous that you have two ultimate Bakugan. I wish I had a second one to be partners with Drago."

"Oh. Sorry," she sighed.

"Well we've beaten all of you but Joe, but he looks like he's bushed. Who should we battle next?" Sonic asked.

"Christopher! He's an Aquos battler. His guardian Bakugan is an Aquos Juggernoid," Alice said.

"Yes! Now we're one step closer!" Sonic cheered.

**Looks like the smashers still have a long way to go. Their next battle will be with Christopher. What sort of new adventure will await them? Will any of the smashers regain other abilities? Only Chapter 11 will tell…**


	11. Two New Brawlers!

As the smashers boarded Marucho's helicopter-like plane, Alice got a call on her Bakupod.

"What's that ringing?" Sonic asked.

"It's a message…from Christopher!"

"Christopher, huh?"

"Yeah! Hey, Christopher! What is it?"

"Hey, Alice! I'm here in Saudi Arabia, and I found something I think might interest you. I happened to discover an underground Arabian temple. And guess what I found in it, Sonic!"

"What?"

"I found Calibur!"

"Calibur? You mean the sword I use in the game Sonic and the Black Night?"

"That's the one! Hey, after you recover it, then we can battle, okay you guys?"

"Sure!" they all said.

"Okay then! Next stop, Saudi Arabia!" Kato said. They took off. Eventually, in about a few hours, they were there. When they landed, Christopher was sitting near a small knoll.

"Hey, Christopher!" Alice exclaimed. "So, where's the temple?"

"Right here, underground."

"How do we get in?"

"Like this." Christopher jumped up and landed on the top of the knoll. Descending stairs came out of the sand. The gang walked in. They reached a chamber where they saw a black sword.

"That's it! That's Calibur for sure!" Sonic said.

"It's surprisingly not guarded. I lifted it up, and nothing happened."

"That's fine by me!" He ran over and grabbed it. As soon as he did, it became rainbow colored, and turned into an Item Card. "Hey! Do you know what this means? Maybe the three Secret Rings that allow me to go Dark Spine Sonic!"

"Actually, they are here. They're in the Doom Dimension," Wayvern said. "Apollonir contacted me again not too long ago."

"Is that one of the reasons he wanted us to come?" Lucario asked.

"No. That was only to notify you. The reason they called is because they want to battle you all."

"Really? Cool!"

"Speaking of battling, are you guys ready?"

"Oh yeah!" they said.

"So, who will it be?"

"I'm holding the cards," CF said.

"And we'll battle you!" Pikachu, Bowser, and Ganondorf replied.

"Alright! Let's take this outside."

"Good idea. This place is kinda cramped." They went outside to begin the battle.

"Gate Card, set!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Saurus, stand!"

"A blue bull? Strange. Pikachu, go for it!"

"On it!" They both were on Christopher's Gate Card.

"Gate Card, open! Super Pyrus!"

"G power levels switched."

"You think that'll work? Take this!"

"Ability Card, activate! Thunder!"

"Saurus power decrease of 100 Gs. Pikachu power decrease of 10 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Saurus Glow!"

"Saurus power increase."

"That won't help!" Pikachu said. Sparks flew from his cheeks.

"Pikachu power increase of 100 Gs." The sparks sent Saurus flying.

"You're good! Okay! Bakugan, brawl! Mantris, stand!"

"Bowser, hit it!"

"Roar!" It was Bowser vs. Mantris.

"Ability Card, activate! Slice Cutter!"

"Bowser power decrease."

"Gate Card, open! Energy Merge!"

"100 Gs transferred from Mantris to Bowser."

"Ability Card, activate! Aqua Absorb!"

"Ability Card, activate! Frame Fire!"

"Ability card negated. Bowser power increase of 50 Gs."

"Alright! Time to squash that bug!" Bowser jumped up and stomped Mantris with his huge foot. Mantris was defeated.

"Impossible! You guys know just how to counter! Well, it all comes down to this. Gate Card, set! Bakugan, brawl! Juggernoid, stand!"

"On it!"

"Ganondorf, go for it!"

"This will be enjoyable."

"500 to 320. This'll be tough, Juggernoid!"

"I can handle it!"

"Gate Card, open! Final Judgment! I call, Aquos attribute!"

"Ganondorf major power decrease."

"Oh no! I lost all of my power!"

"Don't worry, Ganondorf! Ability Card, activate! Darkus and Aquos Co-Relation!"

"Ganondorf power increase of 100 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Jump!" Ganondorf jumped high into the air. "Fusion Ability, activate! Dark Dive!"

"Ganondorf power increase of 300 Gs."

"No way! How?" Christopher yelled. Ganondorf knocked Juggernoid out. The battle was over.

"You guys are like total masters!" Christopher complimented.

"Alright!" they cheered. Ganondorf got his Dark Dive back. Pikachu got his Quick Attack back. Bowser regained his Flying Fortress move.

"Hey guys, I was wondering," Christopher said.

"Yeah? What is it?" Dan asked.

"You guys are all so good, I was wondering…if I could join the Brawlers?" Christopher asked. The Brawlers were more than eager. Christopher jumped for joy. Joe was waiting for anyone to say something.

"So, what do we do now?" Pikachu asked.

"Uh…don't you remember? We were going to face Joe next," Mewtwo said.

"Oh! That's right!" Pikachu said. He slapped his forehead in embarrassment. Joe stood up.

"Are you all ready?" Joe asked.

"Oh yeah. We're more than ready. I'll hold the cards," King Dedede said.

"So, who will I be battling this time?" Joe asked.

"I think I'll have Kirby, Lucario, and R.O.B. battle you."

"Let's do this!"

"Yeah!"

"Gate Card, set!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Haos Siege, stand!"

"Kirby, go!" They both landed on separate Gate Cards. Kirby inhaled Siege to his Gate Card.

"New battle commenced."

"Gate Card, open! Tornado Zone!'

"Kirby power increase of 200 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Haos and Ventus Diagonal Relation!"

"Siege power increase of 100 Gs."

"Kirby's still ahead by 30 Gs, Joe!"

"Not for long! Ability Card, activate! Lightning Shield!"

"Kirby power decrease of 100 Gs."

"Ha! Ability Card, activate! Jump!" Kirby floated into the air. "Fusion Ability, activate! Stone!" Kirby became a 100 lb. weight. He came crashing down. Haos Siege was smashed on the head.

"Siege power decrease of 100 Gs." Kirby then did some rapid punches and sent Siege crashing down to the ground.

"You really are good! But you won't beat me! Bakugan, brawl! Griffon, stand!"

"R.O.B, go get 'em!"

"Gate Card, open! Transform!"

"Griffon power increase to 550 Gs."

"Think that will work?" R.O.B used his Robo Beam and his Gs increased by 100.

"You can't beat me! Griffon, attack!"

"Ability Card, activate! Gyro!"

"50 Gs transferred from Griffon to R.O.B."

"Now its 540 to 500! R.O.B.'s in the lead now!"

"He won't be! Ability Card, activate! Wing Burst!"

"100 Gs transferred." R.O.B. started to use his Arm Rotor.

"R.O.B. power increase detected." The longer he held it back, the more they increased. Soon, R.O.B.'s Gs were 10 higher than Griffon's. He shoved his arms forward. Griffon was sent packing. Joe only had Wayvern left.

"Gate Card, set! Lucario, go!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Wayvern, stand!"

"Final battle commenced."

"Let's do this! Gate Card, open! Level Down!"

"Wayvern power decrease."

"Ability card, activate! Big Bang Blaze!"

"Gate Card negated." Lucario held out his hand.

"Force Palm!" Lucario said.

"Big Bang Blaze copy cancels Big Bang Blaze." Wayvern's Gs decreased again.

"Stupid Force Palm!" Joe growled. Lucario started charging his Aura Sphere.

"Ability Card, activate! Fire Judge!"

"Wayvern power increase of 100 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Power Charge!"

"Lucario's only at 500! Wayvern's still 50 Gs higher!"

"You might want to recheck your Bakupod," King Dedede said. Joe looked down. Lucario's Gs were 20 higher.

"What? But…but how?" He looked and saw the reason. A white ball was in Lucario's hand. Lucario shoved his arms forward. The Aura sphere returned to normal size and blasted Wayvern in the stomach. She was out of there.

"I…lost. I guess it's to be expected."

"We gave it our all, Joe. Besides, you should be happy!" Wayvern said.

"Yeah! You're right! I am glad for them." Lucario got his ExtremeSpeed, R.O.B regained Robo Burner, and Kirby received his Final Cutter.

"Oh, man," R.O.B. said.

"What's wrong?" Dan asked.

"We've faced everyone on this planet that has a Guardian Bakugan. Sure, you now have Supreme Drago and Runo now has Ultimate Tigrerra, but I want to face someone different.

"Then I'm the one you've been looking for!" said a female voice. Shun recognized it immediately. It was his mother, Shiori.

"Mother?" Shun asked, surprised. She smiled and giggled to herself. "What are you doing here?" he said excitedly.

"Believe it or not, Shun, it's quite a strange thing. You see, five years ago, when you went on your little trip to the Doom Dimension…" Shun blushed a little.

"You knew?"

"Well, a mother always knows!" Shun smiled a little.

"Anyway, during your little trip, I had the strangest dream. I was a little girl, and I was battling you with the legendary Bakugan Oberus."

"Say what? So that's how Oberus was able to do that for my test."

"Wait. You mean that you actually did face a younger version of me?"

"Yeah!"

"Cool! Anyway, after the battle, Oberus talked to me. She said that at one point in time, she wished to see me in the Doom Dimension. Just recently, I had another dream, and I still remembered Oberus. She then told me that I had to meet with you all, and go with you to the Doom Dimension once the smashers regain their special moves."

"Say what? I wonder why?"

"She didn't say, but all she said was that if I went, I'd get a Guardian Bakugan like you all have. She also said that I'd temporarily have a Ventus Falconeer as my Guardian. When I woke up, there he was! So, any of you smashers want to battle me?"

"Sure!" R.O.B. said. They got ready for their battle.

"I choose Sonic, Meta Knight, and King Dedede to battle with," R.O.B. said.

"Alright! Let's dot this! Gate Card, set!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Manion, stand!"

"Sonic, go!" They both were on Shiori's Gate Card.

"Ability Card, activate! Alan Ray!"

"Manion power increase of 100 Gs."

"Uh oh. Ability Card, activate! Ventus and Ventus Copy Relation! If I have a Ventus Bakugan that is more than 50 Gs lower than your Ventus Bakugan, it gets an increase of 100 Gs!"

"That won't help you! Gate Card, open!"

"Oh no you don't! Ability Card, activate! Jump! Sonic, just jump straight up! Don't head for Manion!"

"Got it!" Sonic went straight up.

"Fusion Ability, activate! Spring Jump!" Sonic brought out his spring and went even higher. The spring fell down and cracked the Gate Card. It suddenly became cracked all over, and shattered.

"No way! You cancelled my Gate Card!"

"That's right!" Sonic yelled. He came down with a foot out, and gave a crashing kick to Manion's back. Manion returned to Shiori.

"You got lucky, there. No more Mrs. nice lady. Bakugan, brawl! Fear Ripper, stand!"

"Meta Knight, get it!" They were both on R.O.B.'s Gate Card. Meta Knight was ahead by 10 Gs.

"Ability Card, activate! Slash 0!"

"Fear Ripper power increase of 80 Gs."

"Gate Card, open! Joker's Wild!"

"You're kidding me!"

"Nope!" Fear Ripper exploded on the spot. Shiori was actually enjoying herself.

"I never realized how much fun this is!" she said, laughing.

"Only one more battle to go! Your Falconeer vs. King Dedede!"

"And I'll win! Gate Card, set! Bakugan, brawl! Falconeer, stand!"

"King Dedede, do your best!"

"Final battle commenced."

"Gate Card, open! Grand Spirit!"

"Falconeer power increase of 50 Gs."

"Your Grand Spirit won't do you much good!"

"Ability card, activate! Solar Plexus! It won't nullify you're Gate Card under these circumstances, but it'll decrease your Bakugan by 50 Gs!"

"King Dedede power decrease."

"Now Falconeer is 10 Gs ahead! Go roast that bird!"

"On it, miss!" Falconeer charged at King Dedede.

"Ability Card, activate! Jet Hammer!"

"King Dedede power increase." It hit Falconeer in its solar plexus and defeated it. The smashers cheered. Meanwhile, Exedra was watching their victory from the Doom Dimension. He seemed to enjoy their enthusiasm.

"Pretty soon. I will be able to witness their full power," Exedra said. "I should probably contact Wayvern and let her know…"

Back on Earth, the smashers were cheering. Shun's mother was extremely glad for them. Wayvern could sense Exedra was trying to reach her.

"Hang on you guys. I think Exedra is trying to reach me," Wayvern said. All of them stopped what they were doing. "What is it, Exedra?"

"Wayvern. I have an important message. Tell the smashers that there are 14 Smash Balls located close to you. About three miles southwest near an oasis."

"Guys! You're in luck! The amount of battles you need has been shortened. Exedra has found 14 Smash Balls at an oasis three miles southwest of here."

"Awesome!" Pikachu said. They all went into the helicopter. Christopher and Shiori were pretty excited to be going on a journey.

"Well, Mom, looks like you're now a member of the Brawlers now," Shun said.

"I'm glad to finally see the world like you have been." Soon, the helicopter landed at the oasis. The 14 Smash Balls were right there. They all rushed for them and managed to break them open. They all were glowing. They then unleashed them for the heck of it. Everyone enjoyed the explosions and smoke. Even the bruised smashers were laughing.

"Whoo! That was amazing!" Sonic cheered. They all plopped down laughing. Soon, they got back up, still laughing.

"I forgot what it was like having our Brawls!" Link said.

"Yeah! Fun!" Pikachu chirped. Exedra was laughing at their amusement.

"Come on guys. Let's go back home. Tomorrow, we'll see if we can find someone else new who can battle Link and Mewtwo," Alice said. The whole gang went back into the helicopter.

"You guys don't even need to look. I know just who to have you battle," Exedra said. He suddenly disappeared.

**Now that the smashers have their Final Smashes back, all that's left is for Link and Mewtwo to regain their Up B moves. After that, only their Down B moves are left. And now, Exedra has a plan to help the smashers! Where is he going? Who does he know that has a Guardian Bakugan? The answer will come in Chapter 12!**


	12. The Rebirth of Masquerade!

It was only 4:00 PM in the Brawlers' hometown. All of them were having an outdoor picnic. As they were eating, they were wondering who they would try to find to battle.

"It's too bad that no one else in this world has a Guardian Bakugan that we know of," Shun said.

"Well, you guys do have Supreme Drago, Ultimate Tigrerra, and Ultimate Reaper," Shiori said, hoping to cheer them up.

"We know, but I was hoping to face someone that we haven't faced," Link said.

"I believe I can assist you with that." The voice caught everyone by surprise. They turned around. It was Exedra, the legendary Darkus soldier.

"Who are you?" Shiori asked.

"That's Exedra! He's one of the most powerful Darkus Bakugan! He's actually a mutated version of Alpha Hydranoid," Alice explained.

"So, do you know who has a Guardian Bakugan?" Dan asked.

"Yes. I do. Alice, you remember when Masquerade was separated from your body and appeared to be vanquished?"

"Yes…?" Alice said, confused.

"Well…" Exedra said. He had his palms close together. Purple smoke came from all around, and a bit came from Alice. The purple smoke came together. Drago was glowing yellow. A small amount of energy from the Infinity Core came bursting out. It hit the negative energy. Exedra put his hands together. When he released them, every one of the Brawlers yelled in surprise and horror. It was Masquerade!

"What the?!" Dan yelled.

"You can't be serious!" Shun yelled.

"You…you brought Masquerade back?!" Marucho screamed.

"But he's…evil!" Alice said in shock.

"Correction. Was evil. I used a small amount of the positive energy in the Infinity Core and made him good. He has no memory of being evil. Even if he did, the positive energy would make him regret it. He does know all of you of course. And, since he was your second personality, Alice, he is basically your brother."

"My…brother?" Alice said.

"Yes. And, I managed to take control of a doctor, and I had him forge a birth certificate and social security and everything! That way, people will actually think he was born as your brother!" Exedra said.

"Wow." Exedra laid the sleeping Masquerade down on the ground.

"Does he know were not really related?" Alice asked.

"Actually, I made him think you two are."

"Oh."

"So don't be surprised if he calls you sis or anything like that."

"What's his Guardian Bakugan?"

"I have given him a temporary one, as Oberus did for you, Shiori. It is a Darkus Fear Ripper."

"Thank you, Exedra!" Link said. Exedra nodded, and disappeared.

"Wow. Hard to believe that Masquerade is back," Joe said. They all sat down and ate some more. They left a big plate for Masquerade for when he'd wake up. Within five minutes, he awoke.

"'Yawn'." Everyone turned and saw him wake up. "Boy, how long have I slept?" His voice didn't have an echo or a sense of evil at all. The Brawlers were relieved. "Hey guys? How are you?"

"Fine, Masquerade," Alice said.

"Hey, sis. So, what are you all eating?"

"Just some food Kato made. You want some?"

"Do I? I'm starving!" Masquerade ran over and gorged on the plate. He was surprisingly amiable. None of the Brawlers felt nervous around him. "So, Exedra tells me that you guys need help. I'd be glad to help you!"

"How do you know Exedra?" Dan asked, slurping down noodles.

"Do you guys honestly think I lost my memory of Bakugan while I was conked out?"

"He thinks he was conked out? He doesn't know he was obliterated? Dang. Aside from Bakugan, and thinking he's Alice's brother, he has no memory at all!" Dan whispered to Joe.

"Shh." he whispered back. Masquerade was still eating. He eyed them curiously.

"So, which of you guys still have to regain your Up B moves?" Masquerade asked.

"Link and Mewtwo," R.O.B said.

"I don't think anyone wants to hold the cards twice," Runo said.

"You don't have to!" Tails said from the camera.

"What do you mean, Tails?" Sonic asked.

"I just managed to send Marth to Earth! And, I created a move field so that he wouldn't lose any of his moves! He should be there pretty soon. He said that he would hold the cards in your battle with Masquerade."

"Awesome job, Tails!" Tails blushed. A rainbow rectangle appeared. Marth jumped out of it.

"Hey, guys!" Marth said.

"Hey, Marth!" Link said. "So, you ready to help us out?"

"You know it!"

"So, let's get this battle started!" Masquerade said.

"Yeah!"

"Gate Card, set!"

"Bakugan, Brawl! Darkus Wormquake, stand!"

"Link, you have experience with giant creatures! Go get that worm!" Marth said.

"Sure thing!" They both were on Masquerade's card.

"New battle recognized. Wormquake at 340 Gs. Link at 360 Gs."

"Gate Card, open! 3rd Judgment! This Card allows me to bring in another Darkus Bakugan, and combine their G power levels!" Link brought out his Gale Boomerang and threw it.

"Gate Card nullified."

"What?!"

"Link! Attack!"

"Ability Card, activate! Ventus and Darkus Abridged Relation!"

"Link power decrease."

"Ability Card, activate! Ventus and Darkus Abridged Combination! This card allows me to raise a Ventus Bakugan's Gs by the amount of a Darkus Bakugan in my arsenal!"

"Link major power increase."

"He's at 600 Gs! Incredible!" Masquerade's Wormquake was defeated.

"How do you like being bested?" Marth teased.

"You won't be saying that for long! Bakugan, brawl! Fear Ripper, stand!"

"Mewtwo, go for it!"

"New battle recognized."

"Ability Card, activate! Slash 0!"

"Fear Ripper power increase."

"Ability Card, activate! Shadow Blaze! This card allows me to increase the power of my Darkus Bakugan by the amount of its opponent!"

"Fear Ripper power increase of 550 Gs."

"Gate Card, open!"

"Mewtwo power increase of 300 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Shadowscratch!"

"Ability Card, activate! Ability Counter!"

"Shadowscratch countered." Mewtwo held out his hand.

"I think I'll take use of that Ability Card you used a few seconds ago."

"Mewtwo power increase of 960 Gs."

"Wha…wha…whaaaaat?! You gotta be kidding me! That'll make his power level shoot up to…"

"1510!" Marth said. Mewtwo charged at Fear Ripper, and with one swipe of his tail, Fear Ripper was down for the count. The battle was over.

"That was fun. Boy, I've really lost my edge. I fall asleep for who knows how long, and I get really bad."

"It's okay, bro. You'll get it back."

"Thanks, Alice."

"Hey, guys, I have a little surprise for you!" Marth said. He pulled out 14 packets. Each of them had two words on it. They were the smashers' Down B moves!

"No way! Our Down B moves! Awesome!" Lucario said. Each of them grabbed their respective package. "Instructions: Smash the package from bottom, top facing you." All of them did that. It released a powder than was absorbed by their skin. They all regained their B moves. Sonic turned to Dan, Runo, and Alice.

"Even though we already regained our moves, I still want to face you all," Sonic said.

"You think you can beat us?" Dan said.

"You're so on," Alice challenged.

"I can take you with one hand behind my back!" Runo said. "Who's going to hold the cards?"

"I will! I'll be both the Bakugan and the card holder! Just one rule! No Gate Card activations. Only Ability Cards!"

"Let's do this! Gate Card, set!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Drago, stand!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Tigrerra, stand!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Reaper, stand!" Sonic jumped onto Reaper's Gate Card.

"New battle commenced. Sonic at 360 Gs. Reaper at 550 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Wall Burst!"

"Reaper power decrease."

"I'm going to wrap this up in one round! Ability Card, activate! Infinity Warp! This allows me to warp Drago to your Gate Card!" Drago warped. "Now to finish it! Ability Card, activate! Cut-In-Slayer!" Ultimate Tigrerra warped to the Gate Card. Then, their Gs were transferred to Drago. They were sent back to Runo and Alice.

"It's all on you, Drago!" they said.

"Drago power increase of 1100 Gs."

"He's at 3100 Gs?! I've never heard of a power level that high!" Sonic yelled. The battle seemed to be over. Sonic closed his eyes. To everyone's surprise, he put his hands in the air! Everyone thought he was surrendering, but then, he pulled out an Ability Card. "Ability Card, activate! Hyper Sonic!" The energies of the Super Emeralds went around him. He started yelling, and became glowing white! He was now Hyper Sonic!

"You think that will work? You need a bunch of rings to keep that form! Plus, your power increases slowly!" Dan said.

"It increases by 50 each second. It's twice as fast as Super Sonic!" he said. His Gs were increasing steadily.

"Drago, hurry up and finish this before it's too late!"

"On it!" Drago charged at Sonic. Sonic managed to get out of they way.

"You can't hit me! I'm too fast!" he taunted. Dan looked at his Bakupod. Sonic's ring count was at 20.

"Just a few more seconds and he'll revert to normal!"

"Item Card, activate! 100 Rings!" Sonic's ring count went to 120.

"No way! They have rings as an Item Card?!" Sonic's Gs were already 500 higher.

"He's at 860 and going!" Sonic kept flying around. His Gs were increasing faster than Dan could count. Soon, ten more seconds had passed. "1360! This is crazy! Well, at least his ring count is down to 40. Come on Drago! Just keep trying to concentrate and lock on!" Drago closed his eyes. He saw Sonic's flight pattern, and blasted a huge fireball at him. Sonic just laughed.

"Chaos…Control!" Sonic yelled. He warped to another part of the Gate Card and flew around some more. His ring count was now at 10. "Item Card, activate! 200 Rings!" His ring count went up again. Dan was starting to lose it.

"Just keep blasting and hope you hit him!" he screamed, flailing his arms around in frustration. Drago was blasting energy all over the place, but Sonic dodged every one. Soon, another 20 seconds had passed. "2360?! That Sonic is getting stronger! In just about 15 seconds, he'll be power enough to beat Supreme Drago!" Masquerade was amazed at Sonic's power. Sonic was still taunting and aggravating the heck out of them. Runo and Alice were shocked at how carefree Sonic was in the middle of a battle. The moment of truth came. Sonic was at 3110 Gs! He started charging. Dan knew it was hopeless. Hyper Sonic wasn't affected by Ability Cards. Joe found that out by doing some research earlier. Sonic whomped Drago hard. Drago roared as he was sent back. Drago's massive body smashed the Gate Card. Everyone cheered for Sonic. He had just beaten the strongest Bakugan in the world. Or so they thought…

Metal Sonic was staring at the gang intently and evilly. He had a small black ball in his metallic hand. It opened up.

"Master Naga, shall I proceed to attack them?" Metal Sonic asked.

"No. Be patient my loyal partner. Soon, I shall unleash my army of Shadow Bakugan minions!" The two disappeared in a black puddle. Exedra appeared again.

"It is nice to see that you have regained all of your moves. Apollonir wishes to see you now. Feel free to join them if you wish, Bakugan Battle Brawlers." Exedra disappeared again. Alice got them all together.

"Okay, guys, you ready?" Alice said.

"Ready!" they all said. Alice held out her warp device. The whole group disappeared. They wound up on the ground of the Doom Dimension. Shiori looked around.

'This is the Doom Dimension? Kinda dreary, isn't it?"

"Yeah, but we did have a lot of fun here," Shun said.

"Yeah. We all got to battle the six legendary soldiers here," Dan said.

"This is where Hydranoid reached his Ultimate form." Drago looked southwest of them.

"That doesn't look familiar," he said. Dan turned to see what Drago was talking about. They saw something that brought them all to shock. It was Green Hill!

"No way! Green Hill? Here in the Doom Dimension?" Sonic said. The six legendary soldiers appeared in front of them.

"Welcome to the Doom Dimension," Apollonir said.

"Nice to see you again, Apollonir!" Dan said.

"Likewise."

"So, who are you guys?" Christopher said.

"We are the legendary soldiers of Vestroia. I am Apollonir, the ancient Pyrus soldier."

"I am Clayf. I am the ancient Subterra soldier."

"I am Frosch, the Aquos soldier."

"Lars Lion. Haos."

"I am Oberus. The Ventus soldier."

"I am Exedra, the ancient Darkus soldier." Marth blushed a little when he saw Lars Lion and Oberus.

"Stop living in dreamland, lover boy," Sonic said. Lars Lion and Oberus laughed quietly.

"We have brought you smashers here for an important reason. You see, even though you have regained all of your moves, you still aren't whole just yet. Meta Knight and Bowser, you still have a second attribute to regain. Also, you all have your other abilities to regain. However, you must get even stronger to figure out where they are."

"So basically, you're saying that you'll tell us where our other powers are only if we manage to defeat you in a Bakugan Brawl!" Mario concluded.

"You're spot on, Mario! So, are you ready to do this?" Clayf asked.

"Yeah!"

"Then let us begin the battles! Each battle will be between Bakugan of the same attributes. The first battle will be against me," Clayf said.

"So that means, it's Lucario and R.O.B." Sonic said.

"And, here's another thing. We will battle on my Gate Card. You two will have a combined power level, but there's just one rule. You cannot use any Ability Cards. You can only use your regular moves."

"Whoa! Talk about intense!" Lucario said.

"Yes, but it shall be interesting."

"Let's do this!" Lucario and R.O.B. said.

"Gate Card, set!" Clayf said. He turned into a sphere and rolled onto his Gate Card. His true form was revealed.

"He looks like a huge Robotallion," R.O.B. commented. He and Lucario went onto the Gate Card.

"New battle commenced. Clayf at 500 Gs. Lucario and R.O.B. combined power level of 790 Gs.

"Gate Card, open! Reloaded! This card increases my power by 100 for every one of the Bakugan on my team. And since I'm one…"

"Clayf power increase of 100 Gs."

"I think we'll take that!" Lucario said. He held out his hand and used the Gate Card.

"Lucario power increase of 200 Gs."

"Wow! They're streaming ahead!" Masquerade said. He was surprised at their resourcefulness.

"Ability Card, activate! Atomic Brave!"

"Clayf power increase of 200 Gs."

"It's 800 to 990, Clayf. You're gonna lose."

"I think you might want to look again." Lucario noticed on his Bakupod that they lost 200 Gs!

"But…how?"

"Atomic Brave allows me to steal any power you were given, and it prevents you from gaining any more power!"

"That means, we're 10 Gs under, and I can't use Force Palm to steal them back! We're done for!" Lucario screamed.

"No we are not!" R.O.B. replied. "My Robo Burner will stop him!" R.O.B. jumped up, and fire and smoke came out of his treads.

"Clayf power increase detected."

"I had no idea you knew what your Robo Burner did! You never used it!"

"Well you were wrong!" R.O.B. smashed Clayf hard. Lucario ran up and blasted him. Clayf was easily defeated. He was highly shocked.

"I had no idea that you would win! I honestly thought that my Atomic Brave would psyche you out and you'd accept defeat! You have beaten me. Lucario, this map will tell you where your other Pokemon moves are. Good luck. R.O.B, you now have the ability to summon R.O.B. legions. You may not have other abilities, but look at your new power level!" R.O.B looked down at his Bakupod. He was now from 390 to 550!"

"Does this mean I am complete now?" R.O.B. asked.

"Yes. Indeed it does. Looks like my job is done."

"What about me? None of the smashers here are Aquos attributed!" Frosch whined.

"Sorry, Frosch. None of this is anybody's fault," Clayf said.

"The next battle will be with me," Lars Lion said.

"Which means…it's Pikachu…and Samus," Tails said.

"Same rules apply as with Clayf's battle. Let's begin. Gate Card, set!" Lars Lion did the same as Clayf. When she revealed her true form, Marth was truly stunned.

"She looks like a beautiful wingless angel!" Marth swooned. Sonic slapped him hard.

"Get a hold of yourself! I thought that a prince would have more dignity than this!" Sonic said. Marth seemed apologetic. He still didn't keep his eyes off her, though. Pikachu and Samus jumped on the Gate Card. They were ready.

"You know wha? This might actually be easy!" Pikachu told Samus.

"What do you mean?"

"I know Lars Lion's ability is Sagittarius Arrow. But, since she's the only Bakugan on her team, she can't use it to bring in more Haos Bakugan!" he told her.

"I see." The two jumped on the Gate Card.

"New battle recognized. Lars Lion at 500 Gs. Pikachu and Samus at 840 Gs."

"That's a pretty high power level!" Mario said. "The other soldiers are in so much trouble! Especially Oberus!"

"How do you know that, Mario?" Oberus asked.

"Think about it! You're up against four people! Link, Sonic, Kirby, and King Dedede!"

"Ouch!" Oberus groaned.

"Let's see how Lars Lion fares against them!" Sonic said.

"Gate Card, open! Trade Off!" Samus jumped into the air, and dropped a bomb. It exploded on the Gate Card, and caused a huge explosion that cancelled the Gate Card.

"Ha! Bet you didn't see that coming! Pikachu said. The two charged at Lars Lion.

"Ability Card, activate! Lightning Shield!"

"Pikachu power decrease of 100 Gs."

"That won't help you!" Samus said.

"Ability Card, activate! Solar Ray!"

"Lars Lion power increase of 100 Gs."

"Do you honestly think you have enough Ability Cards? No matter what you do, our moves can beat you! You only have two more Ability Cards!"

"And they're all I need! Ability Card, activate! Haos Angel Absorption! This new ability makes it to where I can replicate your combined power level, double it, and add it to my own!"

"Lars Lion power increase of 740 Gs."

"Then, that increases her power from 600 to 1340 Gs! How can we beat that?!" Pikachu yelled. Samus leaned over and whispered something to Pikachu.

"Ah! Brilliant!" Pikachu said. Pikachu and Samus got ready. They started getting a rainbow aura around them. Samus put out her arm and charged up her Zero Laser. Pikachu became engulfed in his Volt Tackle.

"Samus and Pikachu power increase of 300 for each Bakugan."

"But how is it more powerful than normal?!" Lars Lion yelled.

"It's because…we're working together! And since our moves are back, their effects are unpredictable!" Pikachu said. "And since our power level was 740 and it's an increase of 600, our power levels are the same!" Samus blasted Pikachu toward Samus. The combined moves of Volt Tackle and Zero Laser created a new move!

"Volt…Laser…Commmmmmeeeeeet!" Pikachu hollered. When he came within one inch of Lars Lion, Pikachu let loose a huge spark!

"Pikachu power increase of 100 Gs." The electric comet blasted Lars Lion, and she was knocked off the Gate Card.

"Incredible teamwork, you two! Here are your rewards." She handed Samus a map of all her suits and weapons. They two thanked her, and walked off.

**The Doom Dimension Saga has begun! With a reborn Masquerade at their side, the smashers are slowly getting hints to regaining all of their moves! What journey will await the smashers once the tests are complete? How will they beat Oberus, Apollonir, and Exedra? Be patient. Chapter 13 is coming.**


	13. The Long Journey

"So, who's next?" Mario asked.

"It is Oberus' turn," Apollonir answered.

"Oh yeah! This will be fun!" Sonic said. Oberus started to twitch. She was slightly anxious, yet slightly excited.

"Let's do this! You all already know the rules. Gate Card, set!" She jumped on the card and turned into her real self. Marth was disappointed.

"Oberus…is actually a…green hummingbird…? Oh man…" Marth whined. Oberus still laughed at Marth's comments. Link, Sonic, Kirby, and King Dedede jumped on the Gate Card.

"New battle commenced. Oberus at 500 Gs. Link, Sonic, Kirby, and King Dedede combined power level of 1400 Gs."

"What?!?!" Oberus exclaimed. She never imagined that it would be that powerful.

"I highly recommend that you don't try to activate that Gate Card. I'd just negate it with my Gale Boomerang," Link warned.

"Oooh, why do you all have to be Ventus? Why couldn't a few of you have been other attributes?" Oberus said.

"We didn't decide what attribute we'd be. Besides, any other attribute would be illogical," King Dedede said.

"I guess you have a point. Ability Card, activate! Turmoil!"

"Oberus power increase of 200 Gs."

"You think that will help you?"

"This card not only allows me to get a power increase, but I can destroy one Bakugan on the field, and return all others!"

"I don't think you'll get the chance!" Link said. "Clawshot, go!" Link shot out his Clawshot, and it shattered the Ability Card!"

"You…you cancelled out my ability!" Oberus said. "It doesn't matter. Time for my Ultimate Ability! Ventus Bird Absorption! This card allows me to increase my power by half of your combined power level!"

"Oberus power increase of 700 Gs."

"I wonder how come Clayf didn't have a card like that."

"I shamefully thought I didn't need it," Clayf explained.

"So, you think a power level of 1200 can beat our 1400? As if!" Sonic replied.

"Now to make sure my power level will be higher than yours! Ability Card, activate! Tornado Pandemonium!"

"Oberus power increase of 100 Gs."

"Now, this final card will make my victory! Gate Card, open! Tornado Zone!"

"Oberus power increase of 200 Gs." Link threw his Gale Boomerang.

"Ability Card, activate! Ability Counter!" Link fired his Clawshot. Oberus grabbed it!

"What?! How was she able to grab it?" Link said in shock. She tore the Clawshot in two. Link wasn't able to stop the Ability Counter! Sonic then knew his Spring Jump was useless.

"Guys, there's only one way to stop this now. Oberus can use her Ability Counter quite easily. We have to do what the others did, and combine our Final Smashes! Lucario and R.O.B. may not have had to, but we do. Let's do this!" Sonic said. They all concentrated and focused their powers. Then, an amazing sight occurred! Sonic turned Super Sonic. Kirby got his pot out and threw it to Sonic! Then, the Triforce shot out of Link's hand, and it went around Sonic, powering him up! Link then tossed him the Master Sword! King Dedede summoned two Waddle Dees, two Waddle Doos, and two Gordos! They all formed a symmetrical design around Super Sonic as he charged forward!

"Major power increase detected." Sonic charged at Lars Lion, and trapped her in the bubbling pot. The Triforce engulfed the pot in energy, and the pot turned golden! Sonic then started slashing with the Master Sword, which was now gold from the energy. The Waddle Dees, Doos, and Gordos were also golden. They hit Oberus repeatedly. The pot then shot Oberus out and caused in inside explosion that actually cracked the pot!

"Golden….Strike!" Sonic said. The final blow was delivered. Oberus was out of there.

"Whoo…phew…intense!" Sonic said. They got off the Gate Card. Oberus was quite pleased to have a magnificent battle of that magnitude.

"That was awesome! I can't believe how strong you guys are!" Masquerade said.

"You four have truly proven how strong you are. These are your rewards. Link. This map will let you find your other items. Sonic. Your powers are scattered everywhere. Some, you must unlock. Some, you must find. I shall now give you the instincts to locate the ones you can find." Sonic suddenly was surrounded by mystical energy. His instincts improved greatly. "Kirby. You now can inhale everything, and unlock even greater power. Your power level is now at 550. King Dedede. You have regained your full power. You all deserve these rewards. Good luck to you all." She went to join the other defeated soldiers on a small mountain.

"Uh, Masquerade, no offense, but could you please take that mask off? It's bugging me." Pikachu said.

"What?! No way?! I love wearing it! It's kinda like my trademark!" he replied.

"If you insist. Just…one question. How long have you worn that?"

"Ever since I started playing Bakugan. Anyway, who do you suppose is going to be next?"

"If it's anything like our journey, I think it'll be Apollonir, then Exedra," Alice said.

"Yeah. Remember when I evolved Alpha Hydranoid for you since you couldn't play Bakugan?"

"Uh huh."

"Those were good times. You know, I still can't believe that I was in a comatosed state for five years, and I still have my memory."

"That was a pretty crazy time. You were perfectly healthy, but you just wouldn't wake up. It was like you were in a long nap."

"I'm glad I woke up just a bit after Bakugan restarted."

"Me too…"

"Let's do this!" Apollonir said. "Mario! Bowser! Captain Falcon! You're up! Gate Card, set!" Apollonir's true form was revealed.

"Apollonir is another Bakugan that is mutated. He's a mutated version of Ultimate Dragonoid," Marucho explained. The three Pyrus warriors got on the Gate Card.

"New battle commenced. Apollonir at 500 Gs. Mario, Bowser, and Captain Falcon combined power level of 1080 Gs.

"Gate Card, open! Super Pyrus!"

"G power levels switched."

"Mario, if you would…" Bowser led on. Mario pulled out his cape, and pulled it toward him, sweeping in energy.

"G power levels switched."

"You've mastered how to use your moves effectively. I respect that. However, a mere 580 Gs higher won't help you, once I activate all of my abilities. To begin, let me use this. Ability Card, activate! Fire Storm!"

"Apollonir power increase of 100 Gs."

"Big deal!" Mario replied.

"Now for card number 2! Ability Card, activate! Maximum Pyrus! You can't use this one, because it only works for me!"

"Apollonir power increase of 250 Gs."

"So? You're only at 850 Gs!"

"Third Ability card, activate! Fire Judge!"

"Apollonir power increase of 100 Gs."

"950 Gs. Big deal." Captain Falcon said.

"Now, fourth Ability Card, activate! Fire Storm!"

"Apollonir power increase of 100 Gs."

"Now you're at 1050. You're still 30 Gs lower. Can we just wrap this up?" Bowser said.

"Not before my finale! Final Ability Card, activate! Pyrus Dragonic Absorption! This is the ultimate Pyrus card! It increases my power by 500 for every Ability card I've played besides this one!"

"Apollonir power increase of 2000 Gs."

"Humona humona humona humona humona…" Bowser yelped.

"I'll take care of it…" CF said. "Come on! Blue Falcon!" He ran over and punched Apollonir in the gut. He summoned the Blue Falcon. He got in, and started heading for him. However, something was wrong. Apollonir was recovering! Mario and Bowser looked at each other and nodded.

"Mario Finale!" Mario said. He unleashed his Final Smash. Bowser became Giga Bowser.

"Bowser, Mario, and Captain Falcon increase of 700 Gs."

"You still aren't strong enough to defeat me!" Apollonir said.

"We don't need to defeat you! We just need to restrain you!" Mario said. Giga Bowser unleashed his fire breath, which combined with Mario's two fireballs. The blast knocked Apollonir to the ground. The Blue Falcon sent Apollonir flying. The battle was now over.

"Incredible!" he said as he recovered. "You truly are strong! Your rewards shall be great. Mario. You now have access to all of your forms. This box will help you store them, and this map will help you find them. Bowser, you shall regain your second attribute. The Subterra attribute." Bowser felt himself getting stronger. His power level was now at 550, which meant he was complete. "Captain Falcon, you may not have any power ups, but you have earned your full power." His power went up to 550. "Good luck to all of you." Apollonir went to the others.

"Now there is only one more battle. Mewtwo. Ganondorf. Meta Knight. You three shall face me," Exedra said.

"This shall be over quickly," Mewtwo said.

"Gate Card, set!" Exedra got on the Gate Card and returned to normal. The sheer sight of him surprised everyone except Masquerade.

"That's…Exedra?!" Christopher yelled.

"Yep," Masquerade said.

"Now that's what a Hydranoid should be like!" Alice said.

"Hey! Don't insult me!" Alpha Hydranoid said.

"Sorry, Alpha Hydranoid."

"Let us begin this battle." The three got on the Gate Cards.

"New battle commenced. Exedra at 500 Gs. Ganondorf, Mewtwo, and Meta Knight at 1390 Gs."

"I didn't expect their power to be so high. No matter, I shall use my Gate Card. Gate Card, open! Joker's Wild!"

"We'll take that!" Mewtwo said.

"What?! Oh no you don't! Ability Card, activate! Grand Down!"

"We'll use that to save ourselves as well!" Mewtwo said. The Gate Card was cancelled on both sides. They were all safe. It was all abilities now.

"You may be stronger, but I have my own methods! Ability Card, activate! Power Charge!"

"Exedra power increase of 100 Gs."

"Now this is where things get interesting! Ability Card, activate! Helping Hand! This card, crazy as it sounds, increases any Darkus Bakugan's Gs by 200 times the amount of Bakugan on the Gate Card! So, you all get an increase of 800 Gs!"

"Mewtwo, Meta Knight, and Ganondorf power increase of 2400 Gs. Exedra power increase of 800 Gs."

"Why did you help us?" Ganondorf asked.

"I suspect a trap," Meta Knight said.

"You are right, my young friend! Ability Card, activate! Merge Shield!"

"Exedra power increase of 2400 Gs. Exedra now at 3800 Gs. Smashers at 3790 Gs."

"How do you like that?" Mewtwo charged up his Shadow Ball, Ganondorf drew his arm back, and Meta Knight started spinning.

"Smashers power increase detected."

"I'll just absorb that as well! Merge Shield!"

"Exedra power increase detected."

"Time to finish this!" He charged at the smashers. They all braced for impact. Ganondorf got ready, and got his Final Smash ready. He transformed into Beast Ganon again! His roar paralyzed Exedra. The time was perfect. Mewtwo jumped into the air, and shot his Shadow Storm at him. Meta Knight swished his cape around him.

"Behold my power!" Meta Knight said. He slashed, Ganondorf rammed, and Mewtwo shocked. Exedra was defeated.

"That battle was truly something. Well, as I promised, here are your rewards. Mewtwo, this will show you where you can find your other moves. Ganondorf, your power level won't change, but you now have the power of the Triforce of Power. You have all of your powers back. Meta Knight, you now have regained your Ventus attribute. Your power level is now at 550. Congratulations."

"Wow. That didn't take long at all," Dan said. Exedra went over to the others, and they started to discuss something.

"Before you all go, we have an announcement to make. Alice, could you please go get Julie's sister for us?" Clayf asked.

"Of course!" Alice said. She used her device and transported away. She returned in just a few minutes.

"Whoa. That was weird. So, why did you want me to come here?" Daisy asked.

"Not me. Them." She pointed to the soldiers.

"Oh!" Daisy said, surprised.

"Daisy!" Julie squealed.

"Hey, Julie! Where am I?"

"It's this weirdo place called the Doom Dimension. It's kinda dreary, but it's okay."

"We have something to say to you all," Apollonir said. "After witnessing your strengths five years ago, Brawlers, and seeing the true power of you smashers, we have decided to leave the Doom Dimension, and join you humans on Earth. We have also pre-selected our new human partners." They all turned into their sphere forms. Oberus went over to Shiori.

"Shiori. When I used your dream to test Shun, I saw great potential in you. I have chosen you as my partner," Oberus said. Falconeer closed up, and went into her Bakuclip. She tried to get him to open up, but he was now just a normal, non-talking Bakugan. Oberus went onto her shoulder. Exedra went over to Masquerade.

"Masquerade, you have the potential to regain your spot as a top player of Bakugan. You are a very unique player. I have selected you to be my partner." Exedra went onto his shoulder. Fear Ripper closed and turned into a normal Bakugan. Masquerade placed it in his Bakuclip. Frosch went to Christopher.

"Christopher. Five years ago, you hated losing. But Alice helped you realize that Bakugan isn't all about winning. Your love of the game inspires me. I'd love to join you and partner up with Juggernoid."

"Aw shucks. I'd he honored to have you as a partner," Juggernoid said. Frosch went onto Christopher's shoulder. Clayf went to Daisy.

"Daisy. When I used an illusion of you on Julie's test, I realized how talented you are. I have selected you for my companion." He went onto her shoulder. Lars Lion went to Runo.

"Runo, after you passed your test, I was truly amazed at your ability to realize things so quickly. You happen to have the right emotions at the right time. Your ability as a brawler has also improved. I have decided to have you as my partner." She went onto her shoulder.

"It's an honor to have you with us," Tigrerra said. Dan was fidgeting. Apollonir went over to him.

"Dan, I have thought about this for a long time. You are highly skilled, and you will do anything to help others. I have chosen you." Dan smiled from ear to ear and started jumping around the place.

"Whoo hoo! I got two Ultimate Bakugan! Yes!" he cheered. Apollonir landed beside Drago.

"Two Ultimate Dragonoids as partners. This is quite interesting," Drago said. The Brawlers cheered. Daisy and Masquerade looked at the Brawlers.

"Yeah? What is it?" Dan asked.

"Well, we were kinda wondering..." Daisy began.

"You don't have to ask. Of course you can join the Brawlers!" Dan said.

"Thanks!" the two said.

"No problem! Now, where do we start on our journey to collect all of your moves?"

"First, let's just see who here has reached their pure forms. That way, we can keep track of who needs their powers back," Runo said.

"Okay then. After they defeated Clayf, it was Lucario. Then, after they defeated Lars Lion, I think Samus and Pikachu became whole," Dan said.

"Wait! I don't have all of my moves!" Pikachu said.

"You're right! I forgot!" Lars Lion replied. She went over and gave him a map.

"Thanks!" Pikachu cheered.

"Okay, so now we got, Lucario and Pikachu. Let's see. After Oberus' test, she said that Link and Sonic have some powers to regain. Then, after Apollonir was beaten, he said that Mario needed to find his other powers. Finally, after Exedra's battle, he said Mewtwo needed to find his moves." He wrote down the names on a pad. "So, it's Lucario, Pikachu, Link, Sonic, Mario, and Mewtwo."

"That's not a lot," Marucho said.

"I say, we start here. After all, the four rings that allow me to go Dark Spine Sonic are here in the Doom Dimension!" Sonic said.

"Good idea! Where are they?" Masquerade asked.

"Well, all three of them aren't in the same spot. According to this map, they're scattered. The first ring is 20 miles southwest of here, on top of the loop.

"The loop is 20 miles from here? It looks a lot closer," Shun said.

"The Doom dimension has only a few hills. It's mainly flat, so you can see for miles," Tails said. He created a holographic map of the whole Doom Dimension.

"Nice job, Tails! Every feature is recorded! Now that we have this, let's get started!" Sonic said. Tails opened another small portal, and sent the holographic device to them.

"You can send all of these things in, but you can't bring us out?" Sonic groaned.

"Sorry. But, even if I could, you guy still need to get the Chaos Emeralds out of Vestroia."

"Oh. Right. Let's get started!" Sonic had the camera lens forward so Tails could catalog everything. Now that Vestroia was confirmed, the librarian was moving all of the books about it to the nonfiction section. Everyone at the library was amazed at everything that was recorded. In about an hour, they had finally reached Green Hill.

"Hey! Is that it up there?" Dan said. They all looked up and saw a golden ring. Sonic ran up the loop and did his Spring Jump. He managed to climb on top and grab ring number one.

"Got it!" He looked over and saw something. It was a Magnet Shield power up! He ran over and punched it open. The energy was all around him. He had regained his Magnet Shield! He jumped down and joined the others. "Awesome! Two power ups, one place! Sweet!"

"Nice job, Sonic! Now, where's the second one?"

"Right here! But you'll never get it!" said a very familiar voice. The gang looked up. It was Metal Sonic! Sonic happened to notice a black ball in his hand.

"Hey, Metal! If you're here to play catch, I think that's a little too small!" Sonic teased. The ball opened up.

"Silence you disgusting creature!" the ball said.

"Naga! I see you've gained the ability to enter the Doom Dimension at will. I'm surprised that you are not in your true form!" Drago said.

"It is to help me fit into the human world, incognito," Naga replied.

"I never thought you were the type to lay low," Apollonir remarked.

"How dare you insult me?!"

"Master Naga, shall I unleash the Shadow Bakugan now?" Metal Sonic asked.

"Yes. Be prepared for your demise, as I unleash the most powerful Bakugan ever!" Naga said. A dark cloud appeared above them. Slowly, strange black Bakugan were pouring out of the menacing cloud. "Behold the power of my Shadow Bakugan!" All of the Bakugan were pure black versions of regular Bakugan. All of the Bakugan went to normal size and engaged the creatures in battle. Exedra went over to Sonic.

"Sonic! Hurry up and engage your Magnet Shield! I have a plan!" Exedra said. "Masquerade! Get that weapon over there, and bring it here! Alice! I need you take this string of flexible pipe, hook it up to the machine, and run the other end to that gold field over there!"

"Aye aye!" they said. They all did what they were asked.

"Exedra, why do you need me to get my Magnet Shield on?"

"The gold field over there is actually a huge amount of rings, in the billions. The rings should provide you with enough power to go Hyper and stay that way for a long time." Alice hooked up the pipe, and ran it over as instructed. Masquerade brought the weapon.

"Doy doy whoa, whoooa, this thing is heavy!" he said as he wobbled. He set it down carefully. Alice hooked up the other end of the pipe. Exedra pushed a button, and the pipe became a vacuum! The rings were quickly sucked in, then blasted toward Sonic. The Magnet Shield sucked them in quickly. Sonic's ring count was going off the charts!

"How many of those has he absorbed now?" Alice said.

"I lost track after 20,000!" Masquerade said. Sonic started glowing like crazy! A huge supernova blast of light blew all of the Shadow Bakugan back. When it stopped, everyone stared at Sonic in sheer amazement! He was now light blue, with his quills pointing straight up. They were also even longer than Hyper Sonic's.

"Ultra….Sonic!" he yelled.

"Wow! First Dark Super, then Super, then Hyper, now Ultra?! How many forms does this guy have?!" Alice said.

"Ultra Sonic can only be achieved when Sonic absorbs an enormous amount of rings. I never imagined how powerful he'd be!" Exedra said. Sonic's Gs were increasing by 100 every second! Every one of the smashers and Brawlers were gawk-eyed and open-mouthed when they saw his Gs and ring count skyrocket. Exedra kept managing the weapon. The Shadow Bakugan, Metal Sonic, and Naga were absolutely amazed at Sonic's power.

"I have never seen Sonic's Ultra Form! I'm just blown away by how powerful that hedgehog can get!" Metal Sonic said. Even Naga was shocked. Sonic charged at the Shadow Bakugan at the speed of light. One second they were there, and in a fraction of second, they were gone. The Shadow Bakugan dissipated when they were defeated. The Bakugan blasted huge amounts of energy, and Sonic just went through each one. I a matter of seconds, almost half of the enormous legion was defeated. However, Metal Sonic got smart. He blasted the ring blaster! Exedra managed to escape the blast. Sonic wasn't worried, however. He only lost five rings per second in Ultra form. The Brawlers and Smashers looked at their Bakupods. Sonic's ring count was over 2 million! They looked intently at Sonic. One Shadow Bakugan managed to destroy his Magnet Shield, but he didn't care. He no longer needed it. He kept charging through, blasting every Shadow Bakugan in his direct path toward Metal Sonic and Naga.

"Oh no! Sonic is heading straight for us!" Metal Sonic yelled.

"Throw me at him! I can hold him back!" Naga said.

"Very well, master." Metal Sonic threw Naga, and he returned to normal. The two were in a head on collision! The two collided in a furious flash of blue and black. Naga thought he had the upper hand, but Sonic's immense speed pushed him and sent him into Metal Sonic. The two crashed into the ground. The impact caused Metal Sonic to throw the ring. Sonic managed to catch it. Naga was laughing. The two started to sink in a black puddle. Sonic went after them. They disappeared before he could grab them.

"Cowards! They got away! Oh well. That was still fun! Come on! Let's go look for the other two rings!" Sonic said. The others agreed. Ultra Sonic tried to calculate the distance from the first ring to the third. "Okay, so Metal had the second ring, which is 26 miles north of here. The third ring is a long 34 miles east from the second. If we draw lines connecting all of the points, it forms a large right triangle. So, let's see… 26 squared plus 34 squared equals 1832. The square root of 1832 is… Well, I'm no great mathematician, but it's just a little less than 43 miles northeast of here." Tails was getting mad once again. The gang headed for the third ring. Even though it was a long journey, they managed to get there pretty quickly by riding the Bakugan. The third ring was a difficult one to reach. It was stuck inside a cliff, 100 feet high into the air. The rocks were extremely unstable, so Sonic had to be very careful. After 10 long minutes of slight twisting and pulling, he managed to get it out.

"All right! Ring number 3! Only one more to go, Sonic!" Dan cheered. Sonic came back down and placed the third ring on his hand. He opened the map yet again.

"Okay, let's see… Whoa! The fourth ring is really far! It's 100 miles south by southwest!"

"That place is known as the parallel Doom Dimension. It exists on the other side of this dimension. It is surprisingly lush and green. It is the complete opposite, but strangely, no one who enters returns to the other side. I don't know if it's because they don't want to, or if they can't," Apollonir explained.

"Sonic, you fly there and take this walkie. Let's us know if you get into any trouble," Marucho said. Ultra Sonic took the walkie and took off. In three seconds, the gang got a response.

"Holy cow, this place is cool! All kinds of grasses, trees, fruits, it's like I'm no longer in the Doom Dimension! There are all kinds of Bakugan here. I'm gonna go say hi." As he approached, the ground suddenly shook! "Whoa! Whoa! Earthquake!" The ground sank into a pit of black lava. The Bakugan suddenly became stone. As the ground shook, Sonic noticed strings of energy coming after him. "Looks like Apollonir's second theory was right! The Bakugan that do come here can't come back! The whole place is an illusion! It's actually worse than the regular Doom Dimension! There are these weird string things coming out of the sky!" Sonic was saying. His Ultra form was powerful enough to avoid the strings and even break a few, but there were so many, that Sonic had no choice but to fly as fast as he could. The other Brawlers warped to the scene. The Ultimate Bakugan managed to distract and destroy them while Sonic made a dash for the fourth and final ring. He managed to grab it! But then, that's when the true horror happened! The whole place was shaking. The strings that everyone destroyed floated up into the sky, as the REAL threat emerged. A huge, monstrous creature was being formed by the gray stones! As it grew and formed, the soldiers were freaking out.

"Hey, what's wrong you guys?" Christopher asked.

"That's….that's…Netherwar!" Apollonir yelped.

"In ancient myths, he is the most powerful Bakugan ever and the living essence of the Doom Dimension!" Oberus explained.

"He has the power to absorb any Bakugan sent to the Doom Dimension, but we would normally have nothing to worry about! But he's awake now!" Exedra said. The huge creature of stone and black lava and smoke was tearing the ground apart. The more it rose, the more the ground separated.

"Hurry! Warp us to Sky Island!" Oberus said.

"Where's that?" Alice asked.

"I've seen it before. It's this island way up in the sky, about 50,000 feet. It has its own atmosphere," Masquerade said.

"Okay, you'd better be right!" Alice said. She warped everyone to Sky Island.

"So, I take it that this used to be in Vestroia?" Runo asked.

"Yes. Along with Ever Peak," Skyress said.

"Ever…Peak?" Dan asked.

"It is the largest mountain in the universe, enveloped in warm air. It's a green mountain, filled with all kinds of fruits. In fact, Tails told me a few days ago that it has been warped to your Pacific Ocean. The humans have taken use to this mountain, and have set up a small community there. Of course, I already went to the head before building and told him it was alright. Everyone knew it was from Vestroia, so they were waiting for approval."

"Wow. We need to check that out sometime. I'd love to go shopping on a mountain," Runo dreamed.

"Could we please focus here, Runo? We have a huge Doom Dimension creature to deal with!" Dan criticized. Sonic looked at his Bakupod.

"I'll take care of it," Sonic stated.

"You can't! It's Gs have to be over 5000 or something!"

"Dan, my Gs increase at 100 per second. We've been traveling for at least two hours. Plus, my ring count is now at 2000000. Since it decreases at 5 per second…"

"Oh no! You are not going to steal the smart spotlight from me! Ahem…Sonic has 111 hours until he reverts to normal. Plus, his Gs are over 17000 right now. His Gs will keep going until he runs out of rings," Tails summarized.

"Yeah! So I can take him!" Sonic boldly said. The gang crawled to the edge and looked down. The ground below the island was churning.

"That rumbling sounds like my stomach when it growls," Kirby commented.

"That better not be your stomach. I don't know how anyone could be hungry at a time like this," Shun said.

"I'm not. I'm just saying. You know, it's too bad I'm not bigger. Otherwise, I could inhale that thing."

"I don't think that is a good idea. Netherwar can absorb the power of any Darkus Bakugan. If you could inhale him…" Exedra led on.

"I'd have all of my Gs absorbed."

"Exactly." The creature swerved toward them. When he was a foot in front of the island, he stopped moving, and just kept rising, and rising.

"Does he absorb just pure Darkus, or can he absorb hybrids?"

"Only pure Darkus Bakugan."

"Well then, that means that Exedra, Hydranoid, Reaper, Mewtwo, Ganondorf, you'd better take cover." They nodded, and took shelter in a cave in the middle of the island.

"How tall does that thing get?!?" Sonic yelled. The creature was slowly getting bigger. It looked like a cross between a Centipoid and a Warius. The strings became legs, but he had a few around his neck. His mouth had a long tongue, and it was full of razor sharp teeth. Two Centipoid fangs were around his mouth. He had two horns that were covered with tiny thorns. There were hideous grey wings on his Centipoid lower body.

"Don't worry. The island is actually 2,000 feet above his maximum height. It was sent here as protection from him, according to the legends.

"What…about his strings and tongue?" Mario asked.

"His tongue reaches to another 1,000 feet. The strings reach longer, but they end at the same place as the tongue."

"So, we have a 1,000 foot space between it and us. Good," Alice said.

"No. Not good. I'm sure that thing has an energy attack. We need to destroy that thing! Luckily, it has no Gate Cards or Ability Cards, so it can't power up," Shiori proposed.

"You're right. But first, we need to know what we're up against. We need to know its power level. The attribute doesn't matter," Marucho said. He pointed the scanner at Netherwar.

"Netherwar power level at 20,000 Gs. Attribute classified as Darkus."

"20,000?! That Bakugan is the strongest one ever! Hey, what's that thing over there? It's a silver puddle," Dan said.

"It's probably Metal Sonic in his liquid form. He's obviously scanning Netherwar's ability to absorb Darkus Bakugan, so that Naga can use it to absorb his shadow Bakugan minions so that he can get stronger!" Tails said.

"I think you're right, Tails. He's disappearing now." Sonic rose into the air. "I got this creep!" He charged at Netherwar. He jabbed it right in the gut for a painful blow, but it didn't do much. The two engaged in a furious battle. The two were both invincible! But Sonic wasn't giving up so easily. He knew that Netherwar had to have a weak spot. He flew around everywhere, hitting Netherwar in every spot he could find. He even tried the sensitive spot, but even that did hardly any damage! He was just about to try and get him in the middle of his back, when MUNCH!! He was bitten in the shoulder! "You're gonna pay for that!!!" He gave a swift series of punches to Netherwar's face. Netherwar let go. "Augh! Ow! That thing has a painful bite!" Masquerade was even more amazed at Ultra Sonic. How a hedgehog could stand through so much pain was unbelievable to him.

"Sonic looks like he's in trouble!" Christopher said. Tails was watching everything up close. Seeing Sonic fighting this monster so up close was like watching a movie! Sonic then threw the camera to prevent it from getting damaged in the fight. When Tails saw the new scene, he reeled back in horror. Sonic's shoulder was bleeding! Although it wasn't mutilated, it was gushing in small spurts. Sonic's right hand was over it, trying to ignore it. When Amy came to see what Tails reeled back for, she turned really red.

"That…demon…hurt….my…Sonic?!?" Amy screamed. Dan looked at the communicator, and saw Amy running around, smashing a few junk boxes. He turned it back to the battle. The long battle continued. Sonic was hitting, dashing, and kicking all over him. Netherwar was lashing, slashing, and biting at him. Sonic then did hit the middle of its back. He then heard a loud THUD!! The creature then fell, and the small platform keeping Netherwar cracked. Netherwar was just lying there, floating, unconsciously. He concentrated, and unleashed a blast of light that slayed the beast. The Brawlers and Smashers got on Drago and Skyress, and they stood there.

"So, what are you going to do with that big chunk of rocks?" Masquerade asked.

"I know exactly what I'll do. Since there's no more Bakugan that will be here, I'm to use this Item Card and bring out Shadow for a bit. I can use my Ultra power to fuel his energy, and we can create a huge Chaos Blast that will wipe the Doom Dimension from existence. You guys, find all of your power ups as quickly as you can. Then, when you find them all, get out of here. I'll be fine. My Ultra form is strong enough to resist the power of Chaos Blast." And so, the Brawlers and complete smashers took off for the human world.

"Are you sure you'll be fine?" Alice asked.

"Yeah. I'll be okay. You hurry on ahead."

"Just give me one moment." She handed Lucario, Pikachu, Link, Mario, and Mewtwo warp devices to use once they were done. Sonic nodded, and Alice warped away.

**What perils will await the smashers encounter in their journeys to find whatever power ups are floating in the soon to be nonexistent Doom Dimension? Guess you gotta wait!**

**Authors Note: Just a slight question. Should I make the smashers journeys into separate chapters for each of the five, or just put it all into one? Please put the answer in reviews.**


	14. The Search for Power

_Thanks for the votes you guys! I wanted a maximum of five, but I already got three of the same. The journeys shall be combined._

_P.S. Each of the journeys in this chapter is divided into sections. Hope you enjoy!_

"Go on! Hurry!" yelled Sonic. Lucario, Pikachu, Link, Mario, and Mewtwo went their separate ways to find their scattered power-ups. They didn't have much time.

_Mewtwo's Journey_

Mewtwo was quickly floating through the air, reading his easy to read map. As he read, he found that three of his moves were there in the Doom Dimension. "So, it appears that my Barrier, Swift, and Future sight are here. I'd better hurry. No telling if that Bakugan could manage to recover, then we'd have trouble. I need to find my Barrier first. That could help me a lot. According to the map, and the holograph, it should be…right above me." He looked up, and saw a small note. "I guess it's anybody's guess that that's it. I don't think I should run into any surprises." He floated up and grabbed it. It disappeared into his hand. Mewtwo held it out, and a circle of blue rings appeared in front of him. "That's move number one." He flew northbound for the next one. As he flew, he noticed Lucario pass him.

"Hey, Mewtwo," he said as he passed him. Mewtwo nodded and kept on course. According to the map, it would have been in a small cavern, but after Netherwar arose, he knew that wasn't the case. He search around the general area, and found it within ten seconds. It was lightly floating near the edge of the Doom Dimension. Mewtwo went over. As he approached, he happened to notice the presence of something behind him. He turned around and charged his Shadow Ball, but there was nothing. He then had a flashback from earlier, when Drago explained something to the smashers.

"_Listen carefully, you guys. The Doom Dimension is quite the strange one. It is a place where illusions can be manufactured. If you feel or hear anything, don't pay it any mind." _

The flashback ended. Mewtwo remembered to ignore the noises, as they were nonexistent. He grabbed the second move, swift. After absorbing it, he enjoyed blasting stars out of his three fingered hands. He really was pleased to gather his moves. He knew it wouldn't make his power increase, but it was fun. Mewtwo knew that only one was left. He picked up the map again. The last one was in an unmarked place, which he thought was strange. "Hm. Either no one has been there, or it is in the boundaries of the Doom Dimension. He created a small flame in his hand. The heat revealed some invisible ink. The location was listed as Illusion Abyss. This wouldn't be too hard for Mewtwo. His psychic powers trained his mind's eye, so he could see through any illusions. He sped toward the purple abyss. He happened to pass a ghost nearby. He considered it an illusion, until it spoke.

"Hey, Mewtwo! Check it out!" it said with an Italian voice. Mewtwo recognized it. He nodded, and kept on going. He finally reached Illusion Valley. He knew this would be easy. Once he passed through the black veil, there were hundreds of notes. Mewtwo knew that if he grabbed the wrong one, it could trigger something. He closed his eyes, and saw that it was in column 18, row 170. He immediately flew over and grabbed it. The note was easily absorbed. He flew back to Sonic.

"Okay, Sonic. I got all three." Sonic warped Mewtwo to Earth with his Chaos Control.

_Lucario's Journey_

Lucario went through the Doom Dimension void, trying to find his three moves. According to his map, Dark Pulse, Quick Attack, and Foresight were nearby. He went ExtremeSpeed and zoomed toward Dark Pulse. The map said that it was 10 miles north, and about 70 feet in the air. So, using his sense of aura and speed, he reached the first power up in no time. He grabbed the note, and it sent the move into him. He then had to turn around, and find Quick Attack. About halfway there, he just passed Mewtwo. "Hey, Mewtwo!" he hollered. Mewtwo had nodded, and kept going. Lucario regained sight of his goal, and kept going toward it. It was right there. However as he approached, a barrier knocked him backwards. "Looks like I need to use my new move. Dark Pulse!" Two streams of purple energy shot from his hands, and annihilated the barrier in one blast. Lucario grabbed the second note.

"Nice gob, Lucario!" an Italian voice said. Lucario turned, and saw a round Boo with mustache. "Could you come help me with something?" Lucario noticed it looked worried.

"Sorry, but no. I need to find Foresight. I can't waste any time." Lucario went up and traveled to the third and final move, Foresight. Lucario knew that one could help him out greatly. He held up the map. It said that the move was right in the center of the void. Sonic was there, just about a hundred feet above it. He went toward Sonic. As he approached, Sonic got ready to use Chaos Control, but Lucario was in a diagonal path. Sonic then realized Lucario was looking for a move. Once Lucario reached the center, he saw that the move was trapped inside some sort of blue orb. That gave Lucario an idea. He charged up his small Aura Sphere, and pushed it against it. The orb turned green! Lucario concentrated, and the two auras fused and dissipated. Lucario grabbed the final move. His journey was over. He called up to Sonic.

"Alright, Sonic! I have my final power up!" Sonic's ears heard it. He charged up a yellow ball and threw it at him. The yellow sphere engulfed Lucario, and he was warped to Earth.

_Pikachu's Journey_

Pikachu was using his Quick Attack like crazy, trying to get to his three moves as soon as possible. Thundershock, Growl, and Tail Whip were nearby. As he zoomed, he kept a careful eye on his map. He couldn't let anything distract him. After five minutes of Quick Attacks, he found the first one. He grabbed the note, and regained Thundershock. The map then said that the third was in a cloud. "What does this say? Call down the force of heat from the cloud, to release the captive power. I guess that means I need to find this cloud and use Thunder." Pikachu zoomed and zoomed and zoomed, and finally reached the area where the cloud was. Pikachu was exactly ten feet under it, according to the map. He looked up, but saw nothing. Nether the less, he used Thunder. The cloud it formed revealed the huge cloud, and Growl popped out in a clash of Thunder. When he turned around, he saw Lucario and Mewtwo, but paid them no heed. He had to stay focused. Only one more move to go. The holographic projector showed that his move went around the border. Pikachu saw its speed, and zoomed toward it. He was right in its path. He just about grabbed it, but it turned the other way. Pikachu then realized he had to wait for just the right time, and then grab it from outside its path. He went to the left part of the border, and waited. "I can do this. I know it." In five seconds it came. "Five, four, three, two, one!" Pikachu lunged and grabbed his final move. He zoomed to Sonic. "Got…it." Pikachu noticed that Sonic's wound was healed. "Hey, how'd you heal that?"

"My Ultra form allows me to heal small wounds. You ready?"

"Yeah." Sonic warped him to Earth.

_Link's Journey_

"Alright. Let's see here. I can get the twilight jewel, my second Clawshot, and the Hawkeye. I need to be extra careful with the twilight jewel. I'll get that last." He traveled to find the Hawkeye, which could help a little with his aim. The map said it was pretty close to him. Only one mile north. Link hurried to the spot. He wished Midna was there to help him warp. He got there anyway. He threw his Gale Boomerang and brought it to him. "Alright! I finally got the Hawkeye. Now to find the second Clawshot." He looked up and found a floating Clawshot target. He shot his Clawshot at it, and it latched on. He was pulled up to it. He then saw it. A treasure chest below. Too bad there was no way to reach it. But then it hit him. Link was able to float to his items. "I can't believe I'm so stupid." He jumped off the target and gradually floated down to the treasure chest. He opened it and retrieved the second one. He now had the Double Clawshots! "I bet I can use this to get back to the jewel." He moved back south and found two Clawshot targets, and an active magnetic stone. He locked on to the targets. The magnet then pulled the chains back, and made them reach their maximum length. He was pulled back to the stone. He found a switch beside it, and realized what it was. It was a giant magnetic slingshot! He flipped the switch, and it sent him flying. He pressed the buttons on the Clawshots, and they retracted. Link landed right next to the jewel. He took out a box, and covered the dangerous jewel. He then returned to Sonic.

"Ready to go?"

"Yep. All set." Sonic warped Link back.

_Mario's Journey_

"I wonder what other forms of mine are here." He looked at the map. Only two of his forms were there. His Boo Shroom and his Vanishing Cap were there in the Doom Dimension. He knew the journey would be a tough one since the Vanishing Cap was invisible. He decided to go find his Boo Shroom. It wouldn't be that hard, finding a small white mushroom floating somewhere in the Doom Dimension. 'The map says it's over that way, huh? Alrighty then!' Mario jumped and hopped around and found a small box nearby. He jumped up and bonked it with his head. The Boo Shrrom fell out of it. Mario grabbed it and placed it in the box. He then got a spooky idea. He took it out and eat it. He turned into Boo Mario! "Oh yeah. I'm gonna have fun with this thing!" He went floating around toward the Vanishing Cap. He then saw Mewtwo! 'This will be awesome!' "Hey, Mewtwo!" Mario shouted. Mewtwo looked at him, nodded, and kept on going. "Shoot. I was hoping I could scare him." He floated away, disappointed. As he flew, the sudden realization hit him. What if he couldn't find the Vanishing Cap? It could be anywhere within the area listed! Mario started to panic. He found Lucario, and saw he had regained one of his moves. "Nice job, Lucario!" he called. Lucario noticed him. "Could you come help me with something?"

"Sorry, but no. I need to find Foresight. I can't waste any time." Lucario took off. Mario was really worried now. He could be stuck in the Doom Dimension for a long time, trying to find his Vanishing Cap. One he got to the area, he saw something in the distance. It looked like lines. He concentrated closely. His Boo eyes kicked in! Everything became bluish. He saw it perfectly. A light blue cap was in the distance.

"The Vanishing Cap!" Mario cheered. He zoomed over, when a light appeared. He took the cap off and grabbed the hat. "Whoo hoo!" he hollered. He placed it in the box, along with his Boo Shroom. He jumped over toward Sonic. "Got 'em!" Sonic sent him back with Chaos Control.

_The Destruction of the Doom Dimension_

"Alright. Time to do this." He pressed the button on the communicator. "Tails, are you there?"

"Yeah, I'm here. And Shadow is ready."

"Okay. I'm going to send the camera to Earth. I'll see you guys in just a few minutes. Chaos…Control!" The camera was warped. Sonic held out the card. "Item Card, activate! Assist Trophy!" Shadow was transported to Sonic, who picked up the trophy. He popped out. "Okay, Shadow, you ready to do this?"

"Of course." Shadow charged up his energy. Sonic channeled his power into Shadow to enhance the blast.

"Chaos….Blast!" they both hollered. A red orb went to the center. Shadow disappeared, and Sonic shot a beam of chaos energy into the orb. It was now bright red. Sonic warped to Earth. The orb turned in on itself, and the energy created a large scale supernova of chaos energy that wiped the Doom Dimension from existence.


	15. Ever Peak Events

The others were waiting raptly for Sonic to arrive. Soon, he appeared in a flash of yellow.

"Alright! You're back! How'd it go?" Preyas asked.

"The Doom Dimension…is no more," Sonic said, relieved.

"That's cool," Shun said. Christopher, Shiori, Runo, Dan, and Masquerade were enjoying having new Ultimate Bakugan. Christopher was thinking something.

"Hey, Christopher, what are you thinking about?" Masquerade asked. Christopher stared blankly.

"Huh?"

"I could tell you were thinking of something."

"Oh. I guess I was just wondering that if any Bakugan could evolve."

"Why would you want to know that?" Drago asked.

"I guess I was thinking it would be cool if I could evolve Juggernoid like Alice evolved Reaper."

"That would be cool. Hey! I wonder if Chan, Klaus, Komba, and Julio tried to evolve their Bakugan." Dan asked.

"That would be awesome! Just think, everyone here having an Ultimate Bakugan!" Joe said.

"You know what would be really cool? If those guys joined up with us!" Dan said.

"Yes! I concur! That would make the Brawlers the largest group ever!" Marucho asked.

"Speaking of which, you know what I wish?" Alice said.

"What's that? Shun asked.

"Well, right now, we have one Pyrus user, two Aquos users, two Haos users, two Subterra users, two Ventus users, and two Darkus users. We should try to find another Pyrus player to join us!"

"And if the others joined up, then we'd only need to find another Darkus player! That would make our group up to 18!" Dan said.

"Yeah!" Masquerade said. After the gang mentioned new members, Joe got a message on his Bakupod.

"Hey! It's a message from Chan! She's here in the city, checking out the mega mall on Ever Peak. She said that she, Klaus, Komba, Billy, and Julio want to battle us and evolve their Bakugan."

"Evolve?" Dan asked.

"You do realize that since Reaper could evolve, and that he had the same Gs as them, they can evolve too," Alice said.

"Huh. Who do they want to battle?" Dan asked.

"You, Christopher, Shiori, Daisy, and Runo," Joe replied.

"Why do they want to battle us?" Dan asked.

"She said that Klaus knows you guys got the soldiers, and they want to test their strength."

"I think we can squeeze in a 5 on 5 battle." Wayvern was getting twitchy from excitement. She always wanted to see a 5 on 5 battle. They headed to Ever Peak. Once they got there, Sonic happened to notice strange circular portals on the mountain.

"What the heck are those things?"

"The mountain is so large, even a creature that can move at light speed takes a long time to get from the top to the bottom. So, we designed these point portals that allow instantaneous travel. Foreign devices don't work here, so the ancients had to design their own," Skyress explained. They stepped through a portal and ended up near the mall. Once they went inside, Runo, Julie, Alice, and Daisy squealed and ran through the mall.

"Look! A designer clothing store! Eee!" Runo squealed. Alice, Julie, and Daisy squealed as they ran behind her. The guys had a sweat bead on the backs of their heads.

"What is it with girls and clothes?" Dan asked.

"Who knows? Even after all these years, I've never been able to figure out my sister," Masquerade replied.

"I don't understand them either," Billy said from behind them.

"Hey, Billy!" Joe said. He nodded back. The gang walked into the store. The girls were going all over the huge stock of clothes, examining everything. Runo was particularly interested in a purple velvet designer dress. Gorem, Tigrerra, Lars Lion, and Clayf watched their masters run around.

"I don't quite understand these humans, yet," Clayf said.

"Females tend to have a sense for fashion. Clothes are their passion," Lars Lion explained.

"Ooh! I just gotta have this!"

"Good price isn't it?" Chan said from behind her. Runo whirled around.

"Hey, Chan! You're here for the clothes too?"

"No, not really. I'm just looking around," the female ninja replied. After about thirty minutes, they decided against getting something and met in the center of the mall.

"Gate Card, set!" they yelled. 10 Gate Cards, 10 people, and a lot of Bakugan. This would be a long one. "Bakugan, brawl! Fortress/Sirenoid/Harpus/Tentaclear/Cycloid/Apollonir/Frosch/Oberus/Tigerra, stand!" All of them landed on their respective Gate Cards.

"This'll be fun! Ability Card, activate! Dive Mirage!" Klaus said. His Sirenoid went over to Frosch.

"New battle commenced. Sirenoid at 370 Gs. Frosch at 500 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Anthemusa!"

"You think that will help! Ability Card, Water Refrain!"

"Water Refrain prevents Anthemusa."

"Frosch, attack!" Frosch hopped into the air.

"Ability Card, activate! Polygraph Divide!"

"Sirenoid power increase of 500 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Aqua Cyclone!"

"200 Gs transferred from Sirenoid to Frosch."

"Sirenoid, you're still ahead! Get him!" Sirenoid leaped at Frosch.

"Ability Card, activate! Pyrus, Aquos, and Haos Triple Node!"

"Lars Lion, Apollonir, and Frosch power increase of 200 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Pyrus, Aquos, and Haos Triple Node!" Chan ordered.

"Fortress, Sirenoid, and Tentaclear power increase of 200 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate!"

"I'll take it from here, Klaus! Ability Card, activate! Mega Flare Blinder!"

"Ability Card negated."

"No!" Frosch was defeated and sent back to Christopher. Sirenoid went back to Klaus. "You just got lucky! You won't this time! Bakugan, brawl! Juggernoid, stand!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Sirenoid, stand!"

"New battle commenced."

"Ability Card, activate! Pyrus Gravity! This allows me to bring in a Pyrus Bakugan to one of my Gate Cards!" Apollonir was sent to Fortress.

"New battle commenced. Fortress at 570 Gs. Apollonir at 700 Gs."

"This'll be tough, but we can do this! Ability Card, activate! Face of Rage!"

"50 Gs transferred from Apollonir to Fortress."

"Big deal! Hey, Apollonir, show this big guy what you can do!"

"No problem!" Apollonir charged.

"Ha! Gate Card, open! Character!"

"Fortress power increase of 370 Gs."

"990 to 650! Oh crud! Ability Card, activate! Maximum Pyrus!"

"Apollonir power increase of 250 Gs."

"Almost there!"

"Fortress, finish this quickly!" Fortress charged.

"Ability Card, activate! Fire Judge!"

"Apollonir power increase of 100 Gs." Fortress was still going.

"He's 10 Gs ahead! Come on! I need an ace! Aha! Ability Card, activate! Firewall!

"Apollonir power reduction of 50 Gs." Fortress delivered four punches to Apollonir. He was defeated.

"Holy cow! You're good! But just to let you know, the next one you won't win! Bakugan, brawl! Drago, stand!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Fortress, stand!"

"New battle recognized." Chan looked at her Bakupod. It was 370 to 2000. She gasped at the difference.

"Okay, Billy, get ready to lose! Gate Card, open!"

"Clayf power increase of 240 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Sand Tornado! Now your little Cycloid is going to be brought over to one of my Gate Cards!" Billy smirked. Once Cycloid was on, the battle really started.

"I'll activate these two ability cards! Left Giganti and Right Giganti!" Cycloids arms grew to double their size.

"Wow! Have you been giving your Bakugan steroids?" Daisy teased.

"Cycloid power increase of 100 Gs. Cycloid brought his left arm down and smashed the Gate Card."

"Clayf power decrease of 240 Gs."

"So, it's 470 to 500, huh? Not much of a challenge."

"Ability Card, activate! Stare Down!" Cycloid shot a beam from his eye that went around every Gate card.

"All opposing Bakugan power decrease of 50 Gs."

"Like another 50 Gs will matter. Ability Card, activate! Atomic Brave!"

"Clayf power increase of 100 Gs."

"Big deal! I may not be able to increase my Gs, but I can lower Clayf's! Ability card activate! Wall Burst!"

"Clayf power increase of 100 Gs." Before Daisy could react, BOOM! Cycloid had smashed Clayf with his giant club!

"Unbelievable!" Daisy said. "But this isn't over yet! Bakugan, brawl! Manion, stand!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Cycloid, stand!"

"Okay, Komba! You talk tough, but you are going down! Gate Card, open! Ventus Whirlwind! This brings your Harpus over to one of my Gate Cards!" Shiori said.

"New battle recognized. Oberus at 450 Gs due to Stare Down. Harpus at 370 Gs."

"Ability Card, activate! Turmoil!"

"Oberus power increase of 200 Gs." Harpus was sucked in.

"Oh no you don't! Ability Card, activate! Ability Counter!"

"Turmoil cancelled."

"Oberus is still ahead, you know!"

"Not for long! I'll activate these two cards! Feather Storm and Power Charge!"

"Harpus power increase of 200 Gs." Harpus shot a huge blast of feathers at Oberus. She was quickly defeated.

"Oh man! This will be tough! Bakugan, brawl! El Condor, stand!"

"Now it's our turn! Angel Stairs! Now, your Haos Bakugan must come to one of my Gate Cards! Take that!" Tentaclear was brought to Tigrerra's Gate Card.

"New battle commenced. Tentaclear at 370 Gs. Ultimate Tigrerra at 500 Gs Due to Stare Down ability."

"Whoa! Intense! Huh. Let's do this! Ability Card, activate! Solar Ray!"

"Tentaclear power increase of 100 Gs."

"Ha! Think that'll help? Tigrerra, slash that ugly eye!"

"On it! Rah!"

"Ha! Right into my trap! Ability Card, activate! Power Charge!"

"Tentaclear power increase of 100 Gs." Before Runo could pull out her Velocity Fang ability, Tigrerra was defeated.

"Oh no! I couldn't react in time! Grrrr! Julio you're gonna get it! Bakugan, brawl! Lars Lion, stand!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Tentaclear, stand!" The final battle was in place. Fortress vs. Drago, Tentaclear vs. Lars lion, Sirenoid vs. Juggernoid, Cycloid vs. Manion, and Harpus vs. El Condor. Each of them was in a stare down. Chan motioned for the others. They all looked down at their Bakupods. Their Bakugan were getting a power surge!

"Alright! Our Bakugan are evolving!" Chan cheered. Fortress was suddenly covered in red bricks. Tentaclear was surrounded by lightning. Harpus became surrounded by a bunch of feathers. Sirenoid was inside a bubble. Cycloid was covered by large boulders.

"This is gonna rock! I can't wait to see our new Bakugan!" Klaus said. The power surge stopped at 450 for each of them. Cycloid's Stare Down wore off. When the evolution process stopped, they were amazed! Fortress had a fourth head and two more legs, making him have eight limbs.

"He looks like a cross between a Hindu goddess and some other mythical god!" Chan said. Sirenoid had bluer, longer hair, a longer tail, silver bracelets, and a bigger harp.

"Wow!" Klaus said in awe. Harpus was only a bit bigger, but she had bigger wings, gold dots on her arms, and arrows came out of her fingernails.

"Awesome!" Cycloid had some armor on his shoulders and knees, cleats, and a second club.

"Totally cool!" Finally, Tentaclear had split into two eyes, connected by a small, golden tentacle. The other tentacles were golden as well, and they were all evenly spread.

"So that's the new Tentaclear! I wonder what their names are now."

"I am now Multi Fortress! Behold my amazing power!"

"I am now Lulling Sirenoid."

"Armor… Cycloid!!!!" Tentaclear didn't say anything. Julio's new card did.

"Biopti Tentaclear! Sweet!"

"Ha ha! Pix Harpus reporting for duty!"

"Alright! This new battle will be awesome! New Ability Cards and more powerful Bakugan! Totally worth the effort!" Komba said.

"New battles recognized. Fortress at 450 Gs. Drago at 2000 Gs."

"This will be tough, but I have a plan!"

"New battle recognized. Tentaclear at 450 Gs. Lars Lion at 500 Gs."

"I can do this!"

"New battle recognized. Harpus at 450 Gs. El Condor at 340 Gs."

"Heh! This'll be too easy!"

"New battle recognized. Cycloid at 450 Gs. Manion at 300 Gs."

"Oh yeah! Cycloid'll win for sure!"

"New battle recognized. Sirenoid at 450 Gs. Juggernoid at 320 Gs."

"Easy win!"

"Alright! You're going down Drago! Ability Card, activate! Pyrus Dimension! This increases my Pyrus Bakugan by ¾ of your power!"

"Fortress power increase of 1500 Gs."

"So? 1950 to 2000? Big deal!"

"It will be once I activate this! Wrath of Vishnu! This card powers up Multi Fortress by 250 Gs!"

"Fortress power increase."

"He's 200 ahead! Come on, think! Yes! Ability Card, activate! Pyrus, Aquos, and Haos Triple Node!"

"Drago, Juggernoid, and Lars Lion power increase of 200 Gs each."

"Come on you guys! It's time we pulled out our combination with the two secret cards that no one else has!" Klaus said.

"Right!" they all said.

"Ability Card, activate! Pyrus Gravitation! Now, all Ventus and Subterra Bakugan are brought to a Gate Card with a Pyrus Bakugan on it!" Chan said. El Condor and Manion were sent to Drago. Harpus and Cycloid were brought to Fortress. "Your turn, Billy!"

"Ability Card, activate! Subterra Gravitation! This brings all Aquos and Pyrus Bakugan with a Subterra Bakugan on it!" Juggernoid was brought to Manion. Sirenoid was brought to Cycloid. "Your go, Komba!"

"Ability Card, activate! Ventus Gravitation! Now, all Pyrus and Haos Bakugan are brought to a Gate Card with a Ventus type on it!" Lars Lion was brought to El Condor. Tentaclear was brought to Harpus.

"This is the final battle!" they all said. Wayvern was loving it. She jumped around like crazy from excitement.

"Now to really make this the final battle! Ability Card, activate! Gate Card Return!" Klaus said. All of the other Gate Cards were returned. The huge battle drew a lot of attention.

"Final battle engaged. Brawlers combined power level at 4060 Gs. Other Bakugan combined power level of 2250 Gs."

"Ha! I can't believe it! You guys are that stupid?!" Dan mocked.

"Now, you guys?" Klaus asked.

"Now!"

"Ability Card, activate! Darkus Copy! This card allows us to bring in a Darkus attributed shadow at 300 Gs!" Klaus said.

"So? It's still only 2550 Gs! You guys think you can win?" Shiori asked.

"With this finale card we will! Ability Card, activate! Elemental Fusion!"

"What? Impossible! Elemental Fusion is what created the Gold Ones!" Drago snapped.

"Don't worry Drago! They're only in their second stage!"

"As we were about to say, Elemental Fusion allows us to temporarily fuse the Bakugan into one super powerful one. Plus, once the Bakugan emerges, its power increases by that of the opponents!" The Bakugan symbol appeared above them, and they all took off toward it. The six bakugan went to the center and disappeared. A strange, multicolored Bakugan emerged from it a few seconds later.

"That's… Ulcorien! The most powerful multi element Bakugan!"

"Ulcorien enters battle at 6630 Gs."

"Incredible! That power level is the second highest!" Drago gasped.

"Second highest?" Chan asked.

"Then who's the most powerful?" Klaus asked. Drago pointed to Ultra Sonic. The others sighed in disappointment.

"Of course. Sonic always has to steal the spotlight…" Julio groaned.

"Ability Card, activate! Sagittarius Arrow!" Runo said. Lars Lion got a bow out. A golden arrow appeared, and it hit the Gate Card. Ultimate Tigrerra appeared out of it.

"Brawlers combined power level now at 4610 Gs."

"Ha! Give it up! You won't win this one! No Ability Card or Gate Card can help you!" Billy said.

"Ha! You obviously forget! You don't know what the Gate Card is! Gate Card, open! Super Pyrus!"

"Oh no!" they all screamed.

"Power levels switched."

"They… they managed to pull it off!"

"Not before they witness my new Ability Card! Ability Card, activate! Super Flare Blinder!" Tentaclear's eyes shot out a huge beam that destroyed the Gate Card, and prevented them from using any Ability Card and Special Ability Card. Fusion Ability Cards could still be used, though. But it was pointless. No Ability Card would work. The others won, but it was a tough battle. Their Bakugan evolved into Ultimate form.

"Sweet! Ultimate Tentaclear, a triclops? Nice!"

"Ultimate Cycloid is pretty cool, too!"

"Yeah! I'm large and in charge!" Cycloid gloated. Dan looked at his Bakupod. It was about 6:00.

"Almost time for dinner! Hey! Why don't we go to the food court! I heard the Subway there has some killer new subs there!" he said. The others agreed. As the Brawlers ate, the others asked Dan if they could join them to help the Smashers regain their other power ups. Of course Dan said, "Hey! The more the merrier!" They seemed pretty glad. They went around, looking at everything there was to take in. They were just about to check out the next store when a loud crash and huge amounts of screaming interrupted them. A woman passed ran up to them.

"What's wrong, miss?" Lars Lion asked from Runo's shoulder.

"Some weird metallic hedgehog attacked the electronics store!"

"Metallic hedgehog? What the heck is Metal Sonic doing here?" Sonic asked.

"What else? He needs resources. It's obvious he's trying to attack ever Peak. He always wants to destroy stuff!" Marucho said.

"I already called for police." The woman ran off, and Metal Sonic flew through the doors. The Brawlers gave chase, using the portals to chase him down. Finally, about three fourths up the mountain, Metal Sonic finally had enough. Electricity came out of his hand, and blasted Sonic and the ground. The electric blast cut off the point portal. They were sent to the opposite side of the mountain. Sonic was knocked out of his Ultra form. His Gs were back to normal, and his ring count was 0.

"He knocked me out of Ultra! Why that dirty little!" Sonic was about to say some choice words when the police arrived.

"Where did Metal Sonic go?" they asked.

"Sorry, but we're not sure." They looked up and saw a cable car doing down Ever Peak. "I don't know if Metal would've used public transportation, but it's possible," Sonic said.

"We'll stop him at the bottom of the mountain," the police said. They used their jet packs and flew up to the next cable car. The gang headed to a nearby coffee shop. Captain Falcon went in and bought a large cup. As they sat, Tails figured that the officers would be there within fifteen minutes. There was a large gap, so the gang couldn't get to the point portals on the other side. They then noticed a strange capsule heading up the mountain.

"That's strange. Why would someone be going up the mountain? The only thing at the top is a deep lava pit that is what is being used to fuel the houses and business here," Skyress said. Shun looked carefully at the capsule. There was a blue object inside. Once it moved, he knew who it was.

"Guys! Metal Sonic is inside the capsule! He's going up, not down!" Tails then noticed that there was a small red object in Metal's hand by using the scanners.

"Metal's going to use a bomb to create an eruption!" Tails said.

"Why doesn't he just use the red bombs on his arm? Why is he using an energy bomb?"

"Well, I did notice that his…bomb compartment… is… emptyyyyyyy?!!?! Oh no! Metal Sonic doesn't have his bombs! Not good! Not good!" Tails said. He was freaking out.

"Tails! Calm down. Try and use your scanners to find the location of the bombs," Sonic said. Tails cooled off and pressed a button. He got the results back rather quickly. Once he saw them, he was a white fox. "What's wrong, Tails?" Tails, who could no longer breathe, showed Sonic the results. Sonic was also rather pale. He turned around, and flashed the camera toward them. Everyone was shocked.

"They're at the bottom of the mountain?!" Dan yelled. Tails nodded, and his color returned.

"It seems Metal is really determined on destroying the mountain! The bombs are in a chain that is triggered by a tripwire at the bottom! If the police hit that wire…"

"We can kiss Ever Peak goodbye! I gotta warn the police!" Sonic said.

"You won't make it. The police are only ten minutes away!" Tails said. Mario looked at Captain Falcon and sighed. Sonic slumped in despair and accidentally dropped the camera. Link picked it up.

"Does dat have lotsa chocolate, vanilla, and caffeine-a?" Mario asked. Tails looked at him.

"Yeah…?" CF said. He gave it to Mario, since he wasn't drinking it anymore. Mario took it and went over to Sonic.

"Look. I-a know you don't like-a coffee, and I-a can't believe I'm-a saying dis, but drink up." Mario put his arm out. Sonic took the coffee and took a sip.

"Hm…not bad." He guzzled the whole large cup down. Once he was gone, he gave it back to Mario and burped. Sonic smacked hid lips a little. Suddenly, he started to twitch. He made drastic and erratic movements. Mario made everyone back away.

"You may-a want… to stand-a back." The soldiers watched him with interest. Sonic's moves were even crazier.

"Coffeeeeeeee! Yeah baby! Whoo!" Sonic yelled. He was Spin Dashing in the air.

"Go get dem, tiger," Mario said. Sonic took off saying 'coffee' a lot.

"What… have I-a done…" Mario sighed. (Total Hoodwinked spoof, right?) Meanwhile, the police were about one minute away. They almost hit the wire, when a blue blur stopped in front of them. It was Sonic, panting.

"Sonic, what is it?" one of the officers asked. Sonic started to speak, but the coffee made him talk too fast to be understood.

"YouguysaregoingthewrongwaymetalisgoingupthemountaintocauseasuperhugelavaflowandhesetabombtrapherethatwouldcausethemountaintosinkandyouareluckyIstoppedyouotherwiseyouwould'veblownthemountainupmyfriendsaregoingtostophimnow."

"What?" the officer asked. The quiet officer went up to him.

"I can talk fast and understand him," the third one said. "SoSonicwhatareyousayingaboutMetalHesetabombtraphere?"

"YesIstoppedyouguysjustinthenickoftimemyfootisoneonestepawayfromtriggeringit." The officer went back to the others.

"Okay. Metal Sonic isn't going down here. He's heading up the mountain with a bomb that will cause a huge lava flow. As a backup plan, apparently he set a bomb trap down here that would cause the mountain to sink. We're lucky he stopped us or we would've blown the mountain up. The others are going to stop Metal Sonic from causing the eruption. Sonic here stopped us in the nick of time, because his foot was just one step from accidentally triggering it." The officers got the memo, and went back up. Sonic ran back to the others. In two minutes, Sonic rejoined the others and wore off the caffeine.

"I gave to officers the memo. They should be here soon." Metal showed up within two minutes. The officers showed up at the same time. They all came together. A huge battle ensued. Each of the 16 Brawlers brought out their Bakugan. The Smashers charged, and the officers blasted. But Metal somehow had much more power than before. His speed was fasted than Sonic. His Dark Shield repelled everything. It was basically a stalemate. The cloudy skies made the scene seem more sinister. The battle went on for a long hour. It was nighttime. The skies were finally beginning to clear.

"Augh!" Sonic yelled. Dan still held the camera. He pointed it at the groaning Sonic.

"Sonic! What's wrong?"

"Don't…know…ugh…" Sonic collapsed onto the ground. The clouds dissipated, and the first quarter moon shone. Huge energy waves were coming from Sonic, who now got on fours. It was as if the energy was pushing him down, but Sonic was resisting. The look in his eyes slowly changed. Everyone realized he was transforming! His ears were pointing backwards. His fur was turning unruly and darker. Large claws busted out of his hands. Spikes came out of the stripe on his shoes. His shoes became cleats. His fangs were now larger. After a minute that seemed like an hour, Sonic was totally changed! He howled to the distance.

"He's turned into… Sonic the Werehog!" Tails said.

"How did that happen?!" Joe yelled.

"It was Metal. The electricity mutated the energy of his Ultra Form to resemble that of Dark Gaia's!" Tails said. Link seemed stoked.

"What's with you?" Klaus asked.

"This is good. This is really, really good," Link said as he bent down. He took the box out of his backpack and opened it. He brought the box up quickly and it threw the jewel out. Link jumped up and grabbed it. "He-ya… Roar!" Link said. Black squares formed a shape around Link, and he transformed! He was now Wolf Link! He got beside Sonic. Back in Smash World, Amy happened to notice Sonic. She went over to the screen. On Earth, Dan cautiously gave Sonic the camera. Sonic carefully took it from him.

"Uh… thanks…" he said in a deeper voice. He looked at it and saw Amy.

"Sonic! My sweetie! Thought you could avoid seeing me, huh?"

"Amy, I really don't have the time for this!"

"Oh… fine." Sonic thanked her and closed the window. He looked up at Metal Sonic.

"Do you honestly believe that a new form will defeat me? I won't help you!" Metal Sonic mocked. He sped toward Sonic. Sonic gave a quick punch to his chest. Metal Sonic was sent flying for 10 miles across the mountain! He hit a solid wall, and slid down. "Of course… I could be wrong…" he moaned. He got back up and charged again. Link and Sonic were waiting. Once Metal Sonic was within range, Link and Sonic went into a slashing and biting spree. The scrapped Metal Sonic went in retreat. Link returned to normal. The hugely enlarged group went to a small cabin to stay the night. The Brawlers called their parents and old them. They were allowed. Sonic had a question.

"You know, this didn't hit me till just now. How come you guys don't have jobs?"

"Oh, that's easy. For saving the world, Marucho's parents gave us enough money to where we can buy our own house if we want to, and, we'd have so much left over that we could pay all of our bills for a lifetime!"

"Wow. You guy sure are lucky to have such a great friend." The whole gang went inside and got rooms. The long day finally ended.

**Sonic has regained his Werehog form! Looks like he's even closer to becoming whole! The extended Brawler team now has a plan to find another Pyrus and another Darkus player. What will await them next chapter? You'll just have to wait and see.**

_I need two human OCs to use for new players. Just put down the following info._

Name:

Gender:

Description:

Personality:

Extra Info: This means anything else you want me to know. Heck, you could give them powers if you want!

Please don't be vague, or I'll fill in the blanks.


	16. Enter: The First OC!

**This took a bit longer than I thought, but I finally got 2 OCs.**

**CloneGirl: Thank you for Dammy Hyte. I owe you one.**

**As for the second one, I've waited long enough. I've decided to make my own.**

It was almost 12:00 A.M. at Ever Peak. Everyone was sound asleep. Werehog Sonic's loud snoring didn't seem to disturb anyone. Shiori woke up and went to the kitchen to get some milk. As she strolled down the hallway, she happened to notice a silhouette in the next room. It was Shun, writing in his journal. At home, Shun always recorded everything in an electronic diary. She wondered what he was writing, but decided not to peek in. Ultimate Skyress was just sitting there, watching.

"Why do you always write in that journal during your travels, Shun?"

"I like to record everything that happens in a day, and a lot happened today, Skyress."

"I see. By the way, why were you blushing when you wrote yesterday's entry?"

"It's a secret, Skyress."

"Very well…" She closed up and went to sleep. Shun went back to writing. Shiori carefully snuck past them to the kitchen. Once she came back in about two minutes, Shun was asleep at the desk. She giggled silently and returned to bed. No one noticed the energy leave Sonic and disappear into the air.

-Several Hours Later-

Everyone woke up to a,

"Good morning, everyone!" All of the gang rushed out. Alice, Runo, and Masquerade were making pancakes, and a whole lot of them. Dan was surprised to see Masquerade cooking.

"Hey guys! Wow! Breakfast smells good! Speaking of which, how come you're cooking, Masquerade?"

"There's no way I'm gonna let my sister be better at something than me!" he said. He nudged Alice's arm as she flipped one into the air. Alice took a spoon, and bent it backwards. She let go, and the batter on the spoon flew off and hit him in the mask.

"Augh! Alice! You know I hate that!" He took the wet rag nearby, wiped his mask off, and tended to his flapjacks. The three placed the huge pile of flapjacks on a plate. Kirby was last in line. Alice put up a small sign that read _All You Can Eat_. As the group got their breakfast, Kirby was chanting.

"We're getting pancakes, we're getting pancakes, we're getting pancakes, we're getting pancakes." Once it was Kirby's turn, he got a huge stack of 14 pancakes. "Don't be shy, you guys. Four words. All you can eat!" They got ready to give him some more, when Masquerade gave the girls a devilish idea. They lifted the huge plate, and covered him with it. Everyone, even the manager, laughed. Kirby lifted his head. "Oh yeah, baby! Now we're talking!" He sucked up the pile. The others quickly finished their hearty pancakes. Dan, who always acted like a food critic, noted everything as he chewed a little slowly.

"Yum! Balanced flavor, with a hint of chocolate! Ooh, blueberries? Nice. Hearty. Well cooked and fresh! In short, THESE ARE SOME GOOD PANCAKES!" He gobbled the rest down.

"Oh, Dan. Sometimes, I don't even know why I've liked you…" Runo groaned.

"What can I say? I'm too darn good-looking for my own good." Everyone nearly choked on their breakfast laughing. Even Runo was laughing hysterically. Dan was bemused by the whole scenario. The Bakugan were even laughing. Milk squirted out of Shun's nose, which he wiped up with a napkin.

Joe was actually tearing up from the pain in his gut from laughing. Chan had to pick him up. Masquerade, who no one thought had humor, was laughing the hardest. He was buckled on the floor, tears of laughter on his cheeks. Alice was laughing at Dan and Masquerade. She helped him up, and he recovered.

"Come on, guys, let's go. We should be heading to Dr. Michael's mansion," Shun said. The group stepped out of the cabin and into the late morning air, but they saw the newswoman and her cameraman running to them.

"Excuse me! Could we get an interview with you?" Dan, who loved the limelight more than anything, agreed without haste.

-Manhattan, USA-

A young brunette girl with a pale complexion and skinny body was watching her favorite show on the television. She wore a black shirt and white pants with brown shoes.

"Dammy?" asked a red figure on her shoulder.

"Shh, Solero! I'm watching _Cybersix_, here!" The red figure somewhat resembled a phoenix figure, but there were hands on the wings. Also, many blue lines were on the red spheres inside form. The outside had yellow lines, meaning he was a Pyrus Bakugan. He sighed, rolled off her shoulder, and hit the up button to change the channel.

"Dammy Hyte, you must stop this behavior! It is not good for you at all."

"Oh… fine. Maybe I should-" A sudden news flash interrupted her.

"I'm here at Ever Peak with Earth's beloved heroes, the Bakugan Battle Brawlers! They and the Smashers stopped the ruthless Metal Sonic from destroying this lovely mountain which has helped set up so many new places!" She turned the microphone over to Dan. "So, Dan Kuso, would you care to explain what's been going on?"

"Well, as far as we can tell, Vestroia has split into the six attributed worlds again, and it's expanding at an alarming rate," Dan began. "Drago here has both of the cores with him, and the Chaos Emeralds are stabilizing it somewhat, but we need to defeat Naga and Metal Sonic."

"Why would you need to do that?" Drago took over from there.

"Naga and Metal Sonic are trying to divert us away from reaching Vestroia for as long as possible. If the Chaos Emeralds and Master Emerald weaken, Vestroia could reach a sudden collapse as it expands! The cores are somehow stable within me, but things aren't looking very good."

"Yikes! So, do you have any notion as to how you can cool them down?"

"If my suspicion is correct-" Dammy tried to change it, but Solero tackled her finger. She had a strange dislike for Dan, and the fact that 'heroes always win'. "If the cores haven't separated from my body, then the Earth's energy has fixed them. We just need to get rid of them and place the cores back."

"I see. So, would anyone else like to say what your mission is right now?"

"I will!" The voice caused Dammy to sit as still as stone.

"Could it be? Is he really back?" she breathed. Her question was answered when she saw the familiar mask. She squealed in absolute joy while others were probably glaring at the screen in hatred and horror.

"Wait, aren't you…?"

"Yeah, I was the one who had Hydranoid and Reaper. I was really just training them for my sis," he said, motioning to Alice. While he said that, Alice mouthed some words that relieved most of the planet's population.

'He doesn't remember being evil. Thank Exedra.' Dammy felt a bit upset, but her fangirl attitude far outweighed her disappointment of him not being a bad guy.

"Okay then, Masquerade Gehahbich, what are you all doing currently?"

"Were searching for the Smashers' power ups so they can reach maximum power. We're also looking for two new members for the team. We need one more Pyrus and one more Darkus."

"That concludes this interview, ladies and gentlemen. If you have a Pyrus or Darkus Guardian Bakugan, come to Ever Peak! You just might be able to join the Bakugan Battle Brawlers!" The interview went off to regular weather forecast and sports, but Dammy was squirming and squealing. She bolted out of her chair and up to her room. She came back wearing her Bakuclip and Bakupod. Solero hopped on her shoulder.

"I take we're leaving?"

"We are so going." With that, the door swung open and shut.

-Ever Peak-

"That was… awkward," Marucho muttered.

"But cool! Our announcement of looking for new players is already worldwide!" Dan said, putting a fist in the air. "Well we should go inside. A person or maybe even people will be here soon."

"Dan can actually think!" Runo teased.

"Hey! I resent that!" They strolled into the cabin and looked outside the door, sipping pop and eating pizza. Within two hours or so, they saw a young girl on the mountain. They stepped outside to greet her.

"I take it you're someone who wants to join?" Shun asked the brunette. She seemed to be twitching madly. Within the blink of an eye, she let out an ear-splitting squeal… and tackled Masquerade to the ground.

"What the?!" Dan yelled, staring at the crazed female. Her eyes opened as if she exited a trance, and she gasped as she stood up.

"Oh, man, I'm so sorry! I'm such a huge fangirl that I can't control my impulses half the time!" Surprisingly, the blonde was laughing joyously. He stood up and brushed his coat off.

"It's fine. I'm just surprised that someone actually adores me! I'm not really that famous in a public light."

"That's so not true, Masquerade! You're totally famous!"

"Hey!" Dan snapped. "Are you here just to get an autograph, or are you here for a real reason?!" The air suddenly chilled as Dammy halted. Her face turned slowly… very slowly… scarily slowly to face the boy, her darkened eyes having a scary glint.

"Shut up, you idiot!" Her fist connected with his face, sending him flying to the side of the cabin. Runo didn't want to get pummeled, so she didn't move a muscle. Shun was rather shocked by her strength. She walked to where Dan was, hidden by the wall.

"What was that for?! Do you hate me or something?!"

"Well, maybe if you didn't call Masquerade so many names years ago!"

"It's not my fault he was evil!" Dan hissed. Dammy sighed.

"Well, it's not my fault that the hottest guys are usually evil!" Dan blinked at this girl. Was she even normal? Dammy sighed, noting his confusion. "However, if you don't say any jokes, any names, or insult him in any way, we might be able to be friends, okay?"

"Gotcha. We should go back to the others." Dan and Dammy walked back to the others.

"I take it you sorted out your… problem?" Marucho asked warily.

"Yep! Anyway, my name's Dammy. Dammy Hyte. It's nice to meet all of you!"

"It's nice to meet you, too!" Alice chirped. "So, what's he like?" The brunette took Solero off of her shoulder.

"Bakugan, brawl! Solero, stand!" The red figure opened up, and a figure of a red phoenix shattered, and then reformed in a blue blaze. The flames died down to show a white and blue humanoid phoenix with massive wings attached to his arms. He had red armor that looked like Storm Skyress'. He landed on the ground, and his arms disappeared as his legs became talons. His wings spread as he bowed.

"'Tis an honor to meet you. I am Pyrus Solero."

"I like this guy," Masquerade said, jabbing a thumb in the bird's direction.

"He looks powerful! Plus, he's gorgeous!" Julie breathed. "Can she join us? Please?"

"Sure. Looks like you're in, Dammy!" Dan congratulated. She screeched in delight while Solero returned to normal.

"This is so cool! So, where are we going?"

"We're going to Moscow to visit Masquerade's and my grandfather," Alice explained.

"Awesome! I have an uncle whose summer house is there! He and your granddad are good buddies!"

"No. Way. You're Jared's niece?! Wow!" Alice said. "I can't believe I've finally met you!"

"Thanks, Alice! Let's go!" Dammy said. The others cheered as Marucho called for Kato. They piled up into the plane, and they took off for the mansion.

-Moscow, Russia-

Dr. Michael smiled as he saw an aircraft come into view. He stepped outside of the coziness of his kitchen, greeting the others as they ran out.

"Grandfather!" Alice cheered, warmly hugging him.

"How's the journey been going, dear?"

"Great! We have two new members, in case you haven't seen the news!"

"No, I'm afraid I haven't." Dammy ran out of the plane.

"Hey, Michael!"

"Ah! Dammy! Good to see you! How's Jared?"

"My uncle's doing fine. How 'bout you?"

"Ah, yes, just relaxing! So, who's the second member?"

"He should be popping out any second." A voice sounded in the airplane.

"Who the heck left a banana peel on the floooo-oo-oorrr?! Whoa!" The scientist's eyes widened when he saw Masquerade slide out of the plane and into the snow.

'Masquerade? But how? Why?' However, his questions were answered when he saw Exedra. The blonde sat up to brush himself off, and he ran to hug his grandfather.

"Grandfather! It's so nice to see you again!" Masquerade said. He hugged him as well. Michael was a little surprised, but he realized he was once part of Alice, so he was family.

"Nice to see you again, too, Grandson." Dammy was happy for him.

"Aw. It's like a family reunion!" she sighed. The Smashers introduced themselves to Michael, and he did the same. They walked inside the large laboratory and went to find suitable rooms. Sonic turned the video camera toward Michael, and Tails waved.

"Hey, Sonic, set the camera down. I have a better way to look around." Sonic did so, and the camera turned into a bird-like robot, with the lens for its eye. Its left wing was the screen linked to Smash World, and the right wing was the video screen. It flew around silently, impressing the doctor. Sonic left the room. They set up their rooms almost immediately. It was about 12:00 P.M. there. After they settled, they took a walk around. Michael was there to answer any questions.

They walked into the lab. Once in, Michael told them about every device, even the dimensional transporter. He didn't tell them about the incident from five years ago though. He was careful to not spark a memory in Masquerade. Said blonde stepped toward it. As soon as stepped within three feet, however, he stopped midstep. It was as if he was frozen.

"Hm? What's wrong, Masquerade?" Alice asked. However, he didn't respond. Something in his mind was making him lightheaded. Soon, a flash of light came into his mind, and he had a flashback.

--Flashback--

It was in the very lab he was in. He could see Michael working on the device.

"Grandfather!" he called out. But he didn't respond. He looked around. Suddenly, he watched as an electrical short occurred. The device cracked, and a huge rectangular vacuum appeared. Michael was sucked in! Masquerade ran after him, but didn't catch him. Another sudden flash, and he was in a strange, fiery area.

'Pyrus…' he said. It somehow was all too familiar, although he thought he had never been there. Michael was confronted by a huge, white dragon. 'Grandfather! I'll save you!' The dragon spoke.

"I am Naga! What brings you to Pyrus space?"

'Naga? Why does that name seem familiar?'

"I'll send you back with this!" Naga held a card that sent Michael back to Earth. Masquerade found himself in wintry Russia, and looked at a calendar. It was six months later. He saw Michael return to his lab.

--End Flashback—

"Whoa. That was weird." Everyone had a concerned look on their face. "What's with you guys?"

"You weren't moving for like, twenty seconds! We thought something was wrong," Alice said.

"Just a weird daydream. But, it felt familiar, like a flashback. It was so weird."

"Well, I know how to solve a solution like this. I made sandwiches! How about we take a lunch break?" Michael suggested. Everyone agreed. The pancakes were already digested. They sat in the dining area and ate. Alice seemed a little troubled, but no one was too concerned. Dammy kept admiring the new Masquerade and his mask. Alice looked at Masquerade slyly, and flipped some Miracle Whip on his mask. Masquerade was really agitated. He went to the cupboard and pulled out the glass cleaner. He removed his mask and started washing it. His long, blonde hair hid his eyes.

"Don't you know what vinegar does to my mask? Now I have to wash this twice!" He wiped off the wet mask, and stared in the mirror. Dammy kept leaning her head, trying to get a peek at Masquerade's face. However, it was to no avail, as he dried it and slipped it back on. After touring and talking, it was about 5:00. The gang seemed tired for some reason, so they went to their temporary rooms. Dammy decided to stay until 8:00 P.M. sharp, which was still three hours away. Shiori called everyone but Alice, Marucho, Shun, and Masquerade.

"Yeah, Shiori, what is it?" Skyress asked. Shun and Marucho tiptoed to lean their ears against the door.

"Don't tell Shun I said this, but I have something important to tell you. You know how Shun has a journal?"

"Yes? What of it?" Skyress asked.

"Well, at home, he always has an electronic journal. I never was able to hear him, but one day, I managed to find the place he uses it, and I found out something interesting." She typed a site in Joe's laptop, and Shun's journal opened. "Now, listen to this entry from five days ago."

"I've heard a lot of rumors going around lately. A lot of people are saying I kinda have a crush on Alice…" He started scratching his head. Alice even saw it through a window that was a mirror on the other side. She laughed. Then, Shun was blushing ever so slightly that no one who looked closely enough could see it. "I hope no one finds out about this, but… the rumors are… actually… true." He let out a long breath. "Man. That was embarrassing even to say on a journal." Everyone looked at each other. Alice was shocked.

"Shun? And me?"

(For those of you who have no idea why there's a hint of romance here, general means basically any topic. So, don't be surprised if you see plot twists of different genre.)

The Bakugan knew what Preyas would say next.

"Looks like Marucho's gonna have some bad luck!" Preyas said.

"Yeah! I still can't believe he has a crush on her, too!" Drago chuckled.

"Do you think Shun's good enough for her, though?" Skyress asked.

"Why not? The question is, is Alice good enough for him?" Hydranoid put in.

"Duh!" all of the Bakugan hollered in unison. The Brawlers were watching their conversation.

"How long has Marucho liked her?" Dan asked.

"You remember when Alice told us about Michael being her grandfather?" Preyas asked.

"Yeah?" Runo remembered.

"Well, Marucho thought Alice was going to say she liked him or something!" Preyas exclaimed. The Bakugan laughed a little. So did the others.

"Man, if Marucho gets in Shun's way, he's toast!" Marth said.

"Yeah, but here's the funniest part! Marucho actually believes that he can take him!" Preyas said. The Bakugan couldn't hold it anymore. They fell on their backs laughing. The Smashers were enjoying the humor. Even Mewtwo, Ganondorf, and Meta Knight were laughing a little. Shun and Marucho met gazes. Their eyes shot poisonous looks at each other.

"Alice is mine," Marucho whispered.

"You're joking yourself."

"Oh, I am, am I?"

"I suggest you find another."

"You aren't for Alice. I am."

"Okay! That's it! You're going down, Marucho!" he yelled. The group stopped everything. They heard a lot a crashes, thunks, and bangs. The stopped everything and saw the commotion. Marucho and Shun were both in choke locks. Marucho then grabbed Shun's ponytail and pulled it back, forcing Shun to let go. He then brought his arms forward, and slammed Shun into the ground! Shun then grabbed a wooden spoon, and whacked Marucho's gut. Marucho slammed Shun in the head with a frying pan.

"I got this…" Bowser grumbled. Alice was laughing at the two. Bowser picked Marucho up by his arms and Shun by his ponytail. Masquerade stepped out of the room, laughing and enjoying the show.

"Ow! Let go!" they said, squirming.

"Knock it off, or I'll finish it! Man, I wish DK were here…"

"You could knock them out yourself," Pikachu said.

"I know… but it doesn't fill the void!" he whined. He and DK were friends, mainly because they both had tempers. "Now, will you two behave yourselves?"

"Fine…" they muttered. Bowser set the two down. Masquerade then decided to speak.

"So, Shun and Marucho have a crush on my sister. Well well well." The two looked at each other, then Alice, hinting that they wanted her to tell which one she liked.

"I need to do some thinking…" Alice said. She frowned ever so slightly when she walked away. Dan and the others looked somewhat worried.

"Have you noticed that for the past few days Alice has been a little depressed?" Hydranoid said.

"Yeah. I wonder what's eating at her…" Runo said. The two were best friends. They looked out for each other. By Alice not explaining herself, she knew that something was wrong. Masquerade could feel Alice's emotions, though not as great.

"I've noticed it, too. I don't know how, but I can somehow slightly feel what she feels. It's really strange."

"Must be a twin sibling thing," Link said.

"Perhaps. I just wonder exactly what she's feeling…" Alice walked to her room. After some minor chat, it became eight 'o clock. Jared appeared and picked her up, driving her home. The huge group went to bed. Masquerade walked by Alice's room toward the bathroom, when he heard whimpering from inside. He peered inside and saw Alice crying. He wanted to go in there and help, but how could he when he had no idea why she was upset? 'Ever since I came back she's done this. What have I done to her for the past three days?'

He walked to the restroom, and returned a few minutes later. Alice was lying down now, but still crying. He walked back to his room and went to sleep. The next day, at 6:00 A.M. sharp, the gang woke up to a bell ringing. Alice and Masquerade knew the sound.

"Breakfast!" they shouted as they ran. The others soon followed. Michael was busy.

"So, Michael, what's for breakfast?"

"I made crepes! Care to have some?"

"You made crepes? All right!" Dan said. All of them gorged on the French dish, tasting all the mix of berries. Sonic was particularly hungry.

"Wow! Alice, your grandfather is a great chef!"

"I actually make the recipes. Grandfather just follows them." Michael just kept washing the dishes. Runo laughed at Dan, who tried to swallow a huge piece. Dan nearly choked, but managed to eat it. He then made another stupid comment that made everyone laugh. Runo went over to Dan.

"Dan! Please! We're in someone's house! Behave yourself!"

"You know I'm funny. Don't deny it." Runo did have to laugh.

"Yeah, I guess it's true." She leaned over and gave Dan a little peck on the cheek, which made him blush. Everyone oohed at the cute couple. Runo blushed at their remarks. "What's the big deal, huh?!" She stomped off while everyone else laughed. Dan followed her to the next room. The others had just finished eating when Dammy showed up, asking where Dan and Runo were.

"The young couple obviously wants some private time to kiss… heh heh!" Marucho said. The Bakugan looked at Drago and Tigrerra, who had a sly aura about them.

"What are you two thinking about?" Skyress asked.

"I think its time our next little journey is Bakugan Stalker Style!" Drago said.

"You two are going to spy on them? That's low for you, Draggy," Preyas said.

"What'd you call me, Preyas?" Drago said. His tone was strict, yet calm.

"Nothing, sir!"

"That's what I thought." The two Bakugan rolled off and stopped when they heard the two. They jumped on the window. Dan and Runo were sitting near each other, holding hands.

"Dan, I… don't know why everyone is teasing us about our relationship. They've known since five years ago. It just makes me so…" Dan put a finger to his lips to hush her.

"Don't listen to those guys. They don't know how well we get along." He gave her a serene smile. Tigrerra sighed at the couple.

"Boy, Dan sure is quite caring, isn't he?" the Ultimate Haos Bakugan asked.

"Yes. I'm quite pleased to see how much nicer those two are toward each other." The two returned to the dining room. Ten minutes later, Dan and Runo came into the kitchen. Alice noticed that Masquerade was yawning a lot.

"Hey, Masquerade, what's wrong?"

"I didn't sleep so well last night," he replied. Alice noticed a few tears were crusted on what could be seen of his cheeks.

"I take it you had a bad dream?"

"Bad nothing. I can't remember having any dream worse." He covered his mask in shame.

"A nightmare's nothing to be ashamed of, bro. Care to talk about it?" Dammy listened rather intently.

"Well, okay. I was just sitting on a hill, when I saw a battle taking place before me. There was this really shadowy figure, and he was battling some people. He brought out this… evil Dual Hydranoid, and he was mercilessly attack this kid's Bakugan, and sending them to the Doom Dimension. And then, he just walked off, and it kept happening, over and over, each time some other person! I tired to wake up and stop it, but I couldn't! I could only watch as this evil figure left a trail of defeat and agony! It was awful!" The more he talked, the more he was trembling and whimpering.

"Oh, Masquerade…" She gave him a hug to comfort him. "Don't worry. It was only a dream…" Alice was now really worried, though. Everyone could see it in her face. 'Oh man. This is not good. Not good! If Masquerade regains his memory, it'll be tragic for him!' She shook her head.

**Everything is going great for the Brawlers, and a lot of revelations have occurred. Alice now knows Shun and Marucho like her. Who will she choose? However, aside from that, the guilt inside of Alice from having to lie to Masquerade is slowly devouring her. Will Masquerade learn the truth? Find out next chapter!**


	17. Masquerade Learns the Truth

Everyone was already outside. With the day just beginning, there was a lot to do for the day. Masquerade had finally calmed down after explaining his nightmare. It seemed that the air was lighter than usual. The blonde occasionally saw a certain teen following him and hiding whenever he turned around.

"You know, Dammy, you don't have to always do that," he chuckled. The brunette shyly stepped out from a corner, scratching her head.

"Sorry. It's just that I have those instincts," she said with a sheepish smile. The two glanced over to see that Kirby and Pikachu were having a fight like they would in Smash World. Mewtwo and Lucario were having some form of contest to see who the better of the two was.

Shun and Marucho were glaring at each other as well, but they were just mad at each other because they both liked Alice. The aforementioned female was sitting in a chair, not knowing what to do. Runo took notice of that and walked over to her.

"What's wrong, Alice? Is it about… Masquerade?" Surprisingly, Alice shook her head.

"No, it's not that. It's them," she nodded towards the ninja and millionaire. "I don't know how to tell if I really like them or not." Runo started drawing out a long hum.

"Well… At first, I thought Dan was a loser. Then, when I saw how determined he was, I guess you can say it sorta kicked up from there. It was when I looked in his eyes when I saw how much I really cared about him."

"You just gazed into his eyes?"

"Yeah… It's kinda corny, but I could feel it in my chest." Alice nodded happily.

"Thanks, Runo!" Runo nodded back with a small smile.

"No problem. Now I gotta go see if that fool hasn't done anything stupid, yet…" Alice giggled and walked to the two. Shun and Marucho had heard everything and were already formulating ideas to humiliate the other. Marucho stood up and walked towards the back of the house, but Shun stuck his foot out and tripped him.

Marucho landed face-first in the dirt. Alice sighed and picked him up, allowing their gazes to connect for a short while. Shun remained calm as Marucho felt his heart pick up a beat.

'Oh boy. This could be it!' Shun smirked lightly.

'There's no way she'll fall for him.' Alice strayed for only a second.

'Hm… Nothing…' She let go of his hands and walked off with an apologetic look on her face. Marucho's shoulders slumped. Shun chuckled slightly, earning a glare from the blonde. Masquerade started to laugh at the two behaving like children, but another flashback overcame him.

--Flashback--

Masquerade found himself inside the battlefield and saw that same silhouette. Only this time, he was able to move to the side. To his dismay, he saw that he was the figure!

"What?! Me sending Bakugan to the… No way! That's not right!" His fist clenched as he stalked up to the black copy of himself. The figure turned to him so Masquerade punched the other. The right side wavered and morphed into Alice's features. "What the… Half Alice and half me? What's going on here?!"

--Real World--

Alice noticed her brother's face as he had his second flashback.

"Oh no. He has to be having a bad one this time!" she said worriedly. The others had concerned looks on their faces.

--Flashback--

Masquerade was beyond confused. Why was he having these strange flashbacks and dreams?

"Why is this happening?"

--End Flashback--

Masquerade's eyes blinked a few times before he realized he was back in the yard. He seemed calm, but he was shaken inwardly.

"Why am I having these hallucinations? Why here?" Alice smiled, having a lie already planned.

"Well, I sometimes get them from the dust on Grandfather's older devices. It should wear off soon." Masquerade nodded thankfully and walked off. The redhead started walking towards the house entrance, but was stopped as Shun joined her. Her hand brushed by his slightly.

Alice didn't notice but she did see the raven-haired teen's face flush red. She seemed concerned, thinking he had a fever or something. She placed a hand on his cheek to see if he was sick. Unexpectedly, Shun fainted in her arms. She rushed him inside like she would to anyone else.

The others began to laugh, though. They knew what was really going on. Thankfully, after about ten minutes, the boy woke up on the couch. There was a glass of water and a couple pills on the table.

"Ugh… What just happened? Oh… right… I fainted." His face flared in anger towards himself. It was at that moment that Alice walked in. She smiled lightly and walked to him.

"Oh! You're face is still burning up. You should probably take those pills." Shun looked at her, his eyes not straying from her face.

"Haven't you ever seen someone blush before?" Shun asked slowly, still slightly disoriented. He was able to see that Alice's face was now rosy red. He didn't know if he was blushing that badly, but if he was, that was definite blackmail material. Alice tried to see if the situation was real.

After all, if the _emotionless_ Shun Kazami was blushing, things were serious. That was one heck of a crush. Alice shyly sat beside him and clasped his left hand. Shun took notice and glanced toward the woman of his affections. He gently grasped her chin and connected their gazes.

Alice could feel her heart surge as if a flame was lit inside of her. She then moved in and kissed him gently. Shun responded by wrapping his arm around her waist. Marucho couldn't work up the nerve to be jealous. If it was meant to be, it was meant to be. The Ventus Brawler slowly pulled away to see his friends whooping.

Shiori, on the other hand, had her hands clasped together as her eyes shone with unshed tears of joy. The Ventus Brawler scowled. He didn't like having so much attention.

"Mom! Quit doing that!" The others laughed as they walked into the living room, beginning to talk. Sonic eventually decided that he had enough sitting around and dashed off. He came back within minutes and showed the others that he collected his shields, being able to switch from one to the other at ease.

Dammy was walking around the mansion when she heard a conversation going on. Being one known to eavesdrop, she snuck closer. She could make out Masquerade and Marucho's voices.

"You seem a bit jealous all of a sudden, blondie," Masquerade chuckled. The rich kid glared.

"Oh, shut up! At least you have someone who really likes you." The blonde snorted.

"Dammy? Are you kidding me? That girl only likes my mask." That statement caused the skinny brunette to frown. To be honest, she had no idea how she truly felt about the spiky-haired teenager.

Eventually, hours passed, and all was quiet in the mansion. No one felt like searching for power ups at the moment. Alice, however, was still tense. The guilt was slowly reaching the surface. Her eyes were downcast. Shun picked it up with his ninja senses and walked to her.

"Are you okay, Alice?" The redhead shook her head, tears threatening to spill from his eyes. Shun took her hand and walked her into her bedroom. The two lovebirds sat on the bed. Shun held her close to him.

"Oh… Shun, thank you…" she said, her voice close to breaking.

"What's wrong, Alice? Is it about… us?" the raven was a little fearful of their new relationship ending.

"No, it's not that. I... I don't want to talk about it…" Shun nodded.

"Do you need to be alone for a while?" Alice shrugged, not really caring. "Then I'll stay here. You need someone to comfort you when you're really upset." The teenage Russian nodded. Shun held her securely until she fell asleep in his arms. 'I know what's going on. She feels guilty. I don't think it'll be too much longer before she cracks…'

Shun set her on the bed like a fragile doll before walking out. He closed the door and glanced toward his group of friends.

"What's going on, Shun?" Dan asked. Shun gave a quick glance towards the spiky blonde staring through the window. The others nodded before they heard something softly hit the floor. They saw Sonic lifting up several objects.

"What are you doing, Sonic?" Marucho asked.

"The map Oberus gave me said that my Bounce Bracelet is somewhere in this mansion. I can't find it!" It was then that Michael stepped around the corner, holding a strange yellow bracelet with a green jewel imbedded in it.

"Is this what you're looking for?" the scientist asked with a grin. Sonic gave a whoop of joy before he snapped it on. The Brawlers and Smashers walked into the living room and waited for Alice to come out of her room.

After a few tense hours, it was already two o'clock, and the gentle female walked into the area. She sat down on the couch next to her boyfriend. After that, the day just became more and more boring. Alice walked to the door and grabbed a coat and scarf.

"Does anybody feel like going out for a walk? There are plenty of coats for everyone!" The others shrugged before standing up. The Brawlers got dressed while the others simply followed. The crisp air surrounded them as the birdbot flew overhead. Alice suddenly shivered, driving Shun to hold her tightly.

"You okay?" he asked with a smirk. She nodded with a light blush on her face. Sonic, who was right behind them, had a contorted look on his face. Skyress took notice and flew onto his arm.

"Is everything alright, Sonic?" Sonic nodded before look at the two.

"I'm fine. It's just… The way those two act towards each other. Is that really how Amy wants me to act around her?" He shuddered at the thought. Klaus frowned as he looked at him.

"Sonic, I don't really see the big deal about Amy. She's only three years younger than you," the noble replied to him. Sonic shook his head.

"No, it's not the age problem. Well, you guys know that she's… clingy and all. However, what you don't know is how clingy she is. It drives me nuts! Every time I try to save the world, she glomps me and does anything else she can think of. She refuses to believe that I don't like her that way. I just wish… that she would find someone else already." Amy glowered at her idol through the video screen.

"Then why don't you just tell her?" Kirby asked, tossing a snowball up and down.

"Are you kidding? That girl would do one of three things. She'd go into denial, have a conniption fit, or take out that Piko Piko Hammer and start swinging." Mario grimaced.

"Ouch! I'd-a hate to think about where she might-a aim dat thing!" Sonic instinctively covered his groin. Amy's fist clenched, starting to crack the wood of her dangerous hammer. Tails quickly turned the screen off so the pink hedgehog wouldn't lose it.

Kirby smirked as he tossed the snowball before chucking it. Mewtwo, his intended target, was too busy looking around to focus. The ball of ice crystals came in contact with his back. After letting out a growl, he whipped around to glare at the puff ball.

"What was that about, Kirby?" he said with obvious annoyance lacing his voice.

"I didn't do it," he defended. Mewtwo growled and turned around and continued walking. Kirby smirked as he picked up another one and threw it. Once again, Mewtwo got hit.

"Oh, that's it!" he turned around and telekinetically threw a few of the snowy orbs at him. Kirby laughed as he blocked them with his hand. Dan laughed.

"Mega snowball fight!!" he hollered. Everyone but Mewtwo and Ganondorf cheered as they ran for the park. They reached the park and threw snowballs at each other. Mewtwo was actually starting to enjoy it after hitting Kirby a few times. Ganondorf just grumbled as he sat on a bench. Dr. Michael sat on a different one and casually sipped hot chocolate from a mug.

The Bakugan returned to their normal forms and chucked massive snowballs at each other. Wayvern chortled as Drago hit Gorem in the shoulder.

"I had no idea you enjoyed these customs, Dragoroonie," the white and red dragon proclaimed. Drago smirked.

"It's just nice to get out once in a while. All out on the comedian!" he said, hitting Preyas. Soon, the poor lizard was getting bombarded with snowballs.

"Hey! Not cool!" he whined. They all soon began to make snow angels. Drago's looked a bit weird, but no one was complaining. With the day soon exhausted, they returned home. Masquerade was so tired that he collapsed onto the couch. Alice, always being one to make people comfortable, set a blanket over him.

The moon soon shone over the sleeping town of Moscow. However, some people weren't all that lucky…

--Dream--

Masquerade found himself in the snowy scene from yesterday's flashback. He unwittingly followed his grandfather into the lab once again, and his eyes were catching details he didn't really care about.

Michael was talking into a video camera when the buzzer went off. The old man walked and saw that Alice had walked in. Masquerade called to her, but there was no response. The blonde inwardly cursed, remembering that it was a dream that for some reason, he couldn't alter.

He stood there, his eyes widening in horror as the machine cracked and negative energy poured out. A protective instinct surged through his veins, but his feet seemed cemented to the spot. Evil laughter rang in his ears as he saw Michael transform into some hideous goblin creature.

"Hal-G!!" he hissed. The name was definitely a familiar one. Masquerade pondered how he knew that name. However, his attention was diverted as he saw Alice become consumed. Soon, in her place was… him?!

"What the?! What is this!? No! It… It's not true!!" Masquerade covered his eyes as a flash occurred. He found himself watching Alice transform back and forth, destroying Bakugan. "No! Make it stop! Make it stop!" He pleaded to a higher force to let him awaken, but he couldn't.

--Real World--

Alice passed by the living room and heard light sobbing. Worry taking over, she rushed to Masquerade's trembling form. It was obvious he was having a nightmare. She shook him and tried to talk, but he wouldn't wake up.

"Make it stop… Make it stop!" he whimpered. Alice fought bitter tears as she stood up, unable to help. She could only cry it off in her room.

--Dream--

Masquerade was helpless as he watched battle after battle. Screams of pain and laughs of victory flooded his mind, tormenting him.

He had to watch every move his dream self made, every sign of defeat he caused. Soon, a light overcame him.

--End Dream--

Masquerade woke up with a start, panting heavily. His mask was slightly askew, and his hair was plastered to his forehead with sweat. After shaking off the fear, he crawled out of the blanket and changed his clothes, straightening his mask and keeping it on.

Shun, who hardly ever went to bed before midnight, passed by the laundry room, catching the teen with a white t-shirt and a pair of blue jeans. Masquerade glanced at the ninja.

"Um…" the raven started.

"Had another nightmare…" he sighed. Shun nodded and walked off. Michael's super fast and effective washer made a ding sound. He quickly tossed his outfit into the dryer and waited. Shun walked down the hallway towards his room when a loud noise caught his ears. Well, it was quiet to most. It was just his ninja senses making it seem loud.

Silently and carefully, he stalked over to the window and saw Alice in a state of distress. Her eyes were a soft pink from crying. Shun flinched as he saw the broken look on her face. He walked away and a firm idea set into his mind.

"That's it," he muttered. "It's time Michael knew about this…" Luckily, the scientist was happily watching the late night news in the other guest room. He turned to him with a smile.

"Ah, Shun! How can I help you, lad?" Shun shook his head.

"It's not me who needs help. It's Alice. She's breaking down about hiding the truth from Masquerade." Michael's face immediately had a worried expression, and he stood up.

"Thank you, Shun. I should go talk to her." He left the room quickly, just as Masquerade put on his usual outfit. The spiky-haired battler walked around, not wanting to go to sleep, when he heard soft crying. He walked to the window and saw his sister. It was a good thing that the window was a two-way mirror.

He then saw Dr. Michael step into the room.

"G-Grandfather?" Alice asked, wiping her eyes. He nodded. "W-What are you doing here?"

"A certain someone told me you need help." Alice sadly smiled as her grandfather sat beside her.

"Oh… Tell Shun that I said thanks," she sniffed.

"I will. Just remember that I'm here if you need to talk." Alice nodded. Masquerade felt a small tear form in his eye. He couldn't help but share a small amount of her emotions. Alice suddenly buried her face in his shoulder, sobbing loudly. The blonde couldn't stand seeing her like that, so he settled for sitting on the floor, his head resting against the wall nearest the bedroom.

"Oh, Grandfather! W-What am I going to d-do?!" Michael had no response, just letting her cry it out. He gently soothed her, rubbing her back softly. "I-I mean… it's not like I can j-just… tell Masquerade he's n-not my brother!" Masquerade's head softly hit the wall in shock.

"W-What?!" he said in a loud whisper. Exedra remained silent on his shoulder.

"So this is what's been troubling you?" the old man asked.

"Uh huh…" Michael sighed, simply hugging his granddaughter tightly.

"I can understand. You don't want him to remember his past… well, deeds." Masquerade lightly gasped. Were… were all of those memories true?! Alice stood up and walked towards the wall, clutching her chest.

"Yes, but… it's more than that. When Masquerade learns who he was… what do you think will happen when…?"

"When what?" Alice trembled, letting tears fall from her face. The good scientist placed a hand on her shoulder, turning her around so she could muffle her cries. She calmed down slightly.

"What do you think his reaction will be when all of those other memories were just fabricated by Exedra when he brought him back?" The blonde's eyes considerably widened behind his mask. He turned his head towards the black sphere.

"What?!" he whispered. Exedra sighed.

"I… I didn't think it would be an issue. I apologize, Masquerade…" The blonde managed a weak nod.

"I-It's… okay. I forgive you," he said, his voice threatening to crack. Michael remained silent.

"And also…"

"What else is there, dear? What are you truly worried about?"

"What…what do you think will happen when… when he realizes that he never experienced the warmth and comfort of having a family?" Masquerade's resolve broke down, causing him to cry softly. He pressed his head into his knees, simply trembling. Dr. Michael went into a protective drive and held Alice securely, hiding her tears from the world.

"I… I don't know. I never had to go through anything like that," he sighed. Alice wailed into his chest, fueled by anger and sadness. The Brawlers and Smashers shot towards the room from the other side, but Michael waved them off, stating that they needed to be alone.

Masquerade felt a sense of betrayal and anger. He stood up angrily and walked off. He felt that he had been a fool. How could the others trust him? The blonde turned to a mirror and saw his old self laughing evilly at him. In a short flash of rage, he threw the mask off to reveal chocolate brown eyes that stung with tears.

Slipping on his boots, he ran towards the door. Exedra fell off his shoulder, but Masquerade was too upset to go back. He ran out into the rain, slamming the door behind him.

**Yikes! This can't be good. Will Masquerade recover from this, and how? Find out soon!**


	18. A New Masquerade

No one heard Masquerade as he slammed the door. He was running away from Michael's lab. He could never go back there. All of his memories were burned into his brain, and he had to accept them. He stopped as he saw his Bakupod. He took it off and crushed it.

"There. Now no one can find me." Masquerade walked silently in the cold air, as cars splashed more water onto him. However, he didn't care. As he walked, many people tried to give him shelter, but he refused. After about an hour of walking, the rain on his body started to crystallize as the cold air slowly froze it. Soon, a lady walked up to him.

"Dear boy! You shouldn't be out like this in the cold! You'll get hypothermia!" She tried to place a spare jacket on him, but he nudged it away.

"Like it matters. It would just be like adding insult to injury. I'm already suffering more than you know. Hypothermia won't make a difference…" The lady was definitely worried. He had to be suffering very deeply to say something like that. However, she couldn't let him get sick. She tried to place the jacket on him again. "I said, buzz off, lady!" he yelled. He suddenly started to tear up, and ran off. "I'm sorry miss…" The lady heard him. He turned and saw that she understood a little, so he slowed down to a walk.

Back at the mansion, Alice was still crying in her granddad's lap. Michael hated seeing his granddaughter like that. He was crying as well. After another hour and 15 minutes, Alice finally emptied out her emotions and walked out to the couch. Realizing he wasn't there, she went to his room.

"Hey, Masquerade, if you're in there, sorry if I disturbed you…" she opened the door. He wasn't in there! She started to panic. "Grandfather! Masquerade is missing!" Michael stood up. The Smashers and Brawlers woke up and ran out to them.

"Has anyone seen Masquerade?" Michael asked.

"Last I saw him, he had to wash his clothes because they were drenched in sweat from a nightmare," Shun answered. The group went into a full scale search, when Alice screamed. They ran to her immediately. She had fallen in the hallway. Shun picked her up. "Alice! Are you okay?" She opened her eyes and stood up. With a trembling hand, she pointed to the floor. The gang turned. It was Masquerade's mask! The glass was totally shattered.

"He must've just dropped it," Sonic said.

"No. That glass is durable. The only way it would've broken is if he threw it…"

"He must've felt your anger. When your emotions intensify, so do his after all," Marth said.

"What about Exedra? Is he here?" Runo asked.

"There's no note on da refrigerator saying he-a went for a walk…" Mario said. Alice was starting to lose it, but she heard a voice.

"Is that Exedra?" she asked, looking around. She flipped the light switch on, and there he was, sulking in the corner. "Exedra! Thank goodness. Where's Masquerade?" Exedra turned away, and Alice realized it. She looked out the window. "But… why?" The others looked out down the road. Alice ran to get her coat. Michael tried to stop her.

"Alice! You can't go out in this weather to look for him. We'll try in the morning." She slapped his hand away.

"Grandfather, I have to find him quickly! If something happens to him, I will never forgive myself!" She slipped her coat on, and the others got ready. "Exedra, how long ago did he run off?"

"About an hour and 15 minutes ago…"

"What?! He's been out that long?! Oh, please, Masquerade, be okay." Alice prayed. Everyone knew she was worried. Klaus, Marucho, and Christopher ran out.

"Bakugan, brawl!" they shouted. Their Bakugan returned to normal.

"Sirenoid, you can sense objects in water pretty well. Try to pinpoint his location!" Klaus said.

"Juggernoid, Frosch, you do the same!" Christopher said.

"Preyas, we also need your help!" Marucho said. Shun turned to Dan.

"Dan, bring out Drago and Apollonir, and we can look from the air. Bakugan, brawl! Skyress, stand!" Shun jumped onto Skyress, and they took off.

"Bakugan, brawl! Drago, stand! Apollonir, stand!" The two returned to normal, and Dan climbed onto Drago. The three flew in tandem and flew off. Michael turned to Alice.

"Alice, Hydranoid and Reaper can see well in the dark. We need their assistance." Alice nodded and threw her Bakugan. The others just ran along with them. Michael reached into his pocket. A golden, shining ball was in his hand. "Time for me to bring out my little friend!" The others eyed him curiously. "Bakugan, brawl! Necrophilen, stand!" A golden, human like Bakugan came out.

"What?! Necrophilen? Impossible!" Drago said. "That's the most powerful Gold One!"

"A Gold One?" Dan asked.

"And, according to him, he's the last one!" Michael said. The others were amazed that he had such a rare Bakugan. The other Brawlers and the Smashers went to Michael's three cars. They got in and drove off in different directions. Dan contacted them.

"We'll rendezvous back at Michael's house. Good luck!" The whole group split up and went off into the night to search for Masquerade. Meanwhile, it had now been about one and a half hours of running for Masquerade. He was slowly loosing energy.

"Okay, I think I'm about five miles from them. Just gotta… keep… moving… ugh." He turned his head toward a house he was near. Suddenly, he fell onto the ground, unconscious. Masquerade didn't know that the house was Jared's. Inside the house, it was dead quiet. Dammy and Jared were in the front living room. They were quietly playing a board game, when Dammy's ears heard something.

"I think I heard something outside. It was like something fell in the snow." Jared went to his front door and peered out.

"Oh my! It's a kid!" Jared screamed. He ran out picked him up. He carefully carried the unconscious Masquerade inside and laid him on the couch. His clothes were full of holes, and he had many scratches. Dammy looked him over, trying to determine who he was. He had the jacket, gloves, belts, combat boots, chest plate, and shirt, but not the mask. Also, the clothes were ragged.

"Is that…?" Jared asked.

"Maybe. He looks rather cold." Masquerade was slightly blue. She placed her hand on his cheek. She was aghast. "Cold nothing! He's freezing! He must've been out there for over an hour!" She took the thick comforter and laid it on him. "There. That should warm him up."

"I'll go make him some hot cocoa." Dammy worriedly stepped up to her room.

"Solero, I'm worried. He doesn't have a Bakupod, so I can't contact anybody he knows."

"Do not worry yourself, Dammy. I am sure the young man is fine." Dammy smiled and was about to reply, but a soft squeaking sound stopped her. She walked down the steps, and saw that Masquerade had woken up.

"Brrrr. Where am I? Oh! Right. I passed out in front of this house. Someone must've picked me up and brought me inside." He saw Jared carrying a mug of hot cocoa and a change of clothes.

"You're up! That was quite the fall you had out there. What were you doing outside, anyway?" Jared asked as he sat them down.

"I… I don't want to talk about it. I'm just… so confused right now that I can't make heads or tails of anything."

"Finally. Uncle Jared and I were worried. You okay?" Masquerade realized it was Dammy. However, he kept his eyes on the hot cocoa. Dammy noticed frozen tears on his cheeks, and even more were falling from his chocolate brown eyes. She gave him a washrag. He wiped them off.

"Thanks…" he sighed

"Dammy, this young man is obviously going through some tough times." He turned his head to Masquerade. "You should stay a while and go take a hot bath. It should warm you up and relieve a bit of your stress." The brunette sat on the couch.

"Sure. Thanks." Masquerade stood up and grabbed the clothes. As he walked up the stairs, Dammy could see the suffering in his eyes. She sat down and closed her eyes. After a few minutes, they heard the tub running. "Ah, that's better," he said as he lay down.

"Uncle Jared, do you notice anything about that kid that seems familiar to you?"

"You mean that Brawler, Masquerade? Kinda…" Meanwhile, Masquerade was sulking as he fully comprehended the information. He felt the fake memories fading before him. He wished he could hold on, but they slipped, leaving a gaping hole in his brain. It had a bigger effect on his heart. After about ten minutes, he stepped out.

"Huh. A white shirt and jeans. Sorta awkward, considering I wore an outfit like this just about an hour earlier. They seem comfortable, I guess…" He placed on the articles and some new socks and came back down. He finished the hot cocoa.

"Well, I'm off to bed. Goodnight, you two," Jared said.

"Good night, Uncle Jared." Dammy tried to offer him some hospitality. "You know, you don't have to sleep here. There's a bed upstairs." Masquerade turned away, but then turned to face her.

"Well, if you insist." She led him to the room, and sat him down. She sat beside him.

"I understand you have a lot on your mind. Anything you want to talk about?" she said.

"No. Not really…"

"I see." Masquerade turned to her.

"It's not that I don't trust you or anything. It's that… everything's too much for me too handle. I just happened to find out a few horrible secrets about my life, and now I don't know who I am anymore." She turned to him now. She almost became lost in those brown orbs of his.

"Whether or not what happened in the past, grieving it never solves anything. Who you are in the present is what counts." Masquerade grinned at her remark, causing Dammy to smile as well. She gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Now you get some rest, okay?" Masquerade noticed her blush. Dammy noticed he was also red in the face.

"Okay. I bet my friends are starting a search party, but I guess I can stay," he said. Dammy went to her room and quickly fell asleep. Masquerade did the same. At 1:00 A.M., the gang regrouped. Alice held her head. She was starting to lose it again. Dan stepped up to her.

"It isn't much, Alice, but…I found this…" Dan placed a shattered Bakupod in her hand, and she started wailing again.

"Alice, I'm sure Masquerade's fine. After all, it's obvious someone would've taken him in," Drago said.

"I know, but I'm so worried!"

"Wait. Can't you feel what he does? Maybe you could even see what he is seeing right now," Komba said. Alice nodded and closed her eyes. She saw a simple, yet large house. She saw Masquerade inside, sleeping like a baby.

"He's okay. I'm so relieved…" she said as a single tear of joy fell. Everyone sighed with relief and went back to Michael's house.

"We can look for him in the morning," Dan said. The tired group went back to the house. Soon, it was a new day. Dammy woke up at 6:00 AM to see that Jared was already awake. She sat down beside the older man. After about three hours, there was a knock on the door.

"I got it!" she said. She opened the door. To her surprise, it was the Brawlers and the Smashers.

"Hey guys! Can I help you?"

"Have you seen Masquerade?" Alice asked. Dammy saw worry in her eyes.

"Not that I can think of…" she said.

"Just one thing. If you do see him, he doesn't have his mask or Bakupod on." She showed her the shattered mask and Bakupod. Her suspicions from earlier returned.

"Okay, I have a question. I'm sure there are other kids that are similar to him. What are his eyes like? I can identify him easily that way."

"I haven't seen him without his mask, Dammy," she explained.

"Oh, yeah, that's right. Well, I might have seen him, but I'm not sure. Oh, where are my manners? Come on in and make yourself at home!" The others agreed. Masquerade happened to wake up, and he snuck down the stairs. He quickly peeked in and saw the others. He immediately ran up the stairs. Everyone heard the strange noise, looking towards the stairs.

"So, Dammy, what do you mean by 'I'm not sure'?" Alice asked

"Well, the two of us were playing a board game, when I heard a strange noise outside. Uncle Jared looked out and saw that it was a kid. He picked him up and ran him in here. We gave him some clothes since his were ruined, and I gave him a room to sleep in. He looks a lot like Masquerade, but I just can't tell since I've never seen him without his mask."

"Why are you blushing?" Dan asked.

"Oh, well, I happened to give him a kiss last night. Whether he's Masquerade or not, I think I like that guy. And judging by how he blushed, I think he feels the same way," Dammy explained. Alice stood up.

"May… I go see him? To check?" Masquerade's heart was racing when Alice said that. He tried to hold the door shut.

"Sure! He's awake now, apparently," Dammy said. Alice ran up the steps and knocked on the door, Dammy on her heels.

"Hello? Are you in there?" Alice said. She tried to push the door open. "It's stuck!"

"How? There aren't any locks on the door!" Dammy tried to open it. Finally, after they both pushed. Masquerade realized he couldn't hold it shut, and jumped onto the bed. Once Alice stepped in, she saw his head was turned away. However, she knew it was him. Alice started tearing up and ran over to him. Dammy went to a stool in the corner.

"Masquerade! It is you! We were so worried about you! Why the heck did you run off like that?" Alice asked, wrapping her arms around him in an embrace.

"J… just leave me alone, Alice. I have to gather my thoughts," the blonde responded, getting out of her grip. Alice could tell he was upset about something and tried to comfort him.

"Oh, here. I got you something. I tried my hardest to fix it." He turned to face her, and was handed his mask. Suddenly, the dark secrets he learned last night came back to him. As if it was reflex, he screamed and slapped it away.

"NO!" he screamed as he sent it into the wall. Dammy wasn't bothered by the noise.

"Wha…? I don't get it. Did I do something wrong?"

"No. I did, Alice. It's just… I feel so ashamed of myself right now, and I don't know how to solve this dilemma." Alice was confused. She thought he was referring to his flashbacks and dreams.

"Look, Masquerade. If it's your flashbacks and dreams, it's not your fault they-"

"It is my fault, Alice, and it's not because of the flashback and dreams."

"I don't get what you mean. How is anything your fault?"

"It's my fault I ran away because I was the one who was so worried and stupid that I…"

"You…" she pressed on.

"I let my emotions and worry take over and I eavesdropped on your conversation with Michael…" he finished, going into tears. Alice gasped. Dammy was now completely lost about what they were talking about when last night's incident hit her.

'Then, that means… I kissed… Masquerade?' She turned as red as a beet.

"So… you know…" Alice started to cry from shame. "Y-you must hate me…"

"No, I don't hate you. Why would you think that?" he said, keeping his voice straight.

"I-if I wasn't feeling so guilty about lying… y-you would never have been w-worried about me," she sobbed.

"Alice, what has been said has been said, and nothing can change that. I would've realized it eventually. Yes, I now remember I was evil back then, and I do regret that. But, it's those… two final things you told him." Alice then remembered last night.

"_What do you think his reaction will be when all of those other memories were just fabricated by Exedra when he brought him back?"_

Alice's eyes widened upon knowing he heard that.

"_What…what do you think will happen when… when he realizes that he never experienced the warmth and comfort of having a family?"_

Alice broke out into somewhat louder sobs when she realized Masquerade heard that sentence.

"Oh, Masquerade, I-I'm so sorry! It must feel awful for you to r-realize all this!" she wailed, hiding her face to cover the shame she felt.

"To find out I never had a family… that was like I hit a brick wall. To realize I had never been comforted by a parent, held as a child, or had any close friends; I never even had a kiss from anyone. It's just… too much to take…" He was now crying, and Alice was trying her hardest to comfort him. Masquerade accepted her embrace, feeling his sorrow begin to fade. Dammy cried noiselessly. She couldn't disturb the two. Alice then realized something, which she hoped would help him.

"You know, Masquerade, even though you now know you never had a real life, think about it like this. That means you have so much more to look forward to. And also, this may not help much, but you may not have had a family before, but you were a part of me then, and you are now. That means you practically are my brother now. And since Michael is my grandfather, he's yours too. Also, just think about Dan, Marucho, Shun, and all the others. They're all your friends, and they would look out for you the same as they would anyone else."

"Thank you, Alice…" he said, tears of joy flowing from his face. Alice got up and retrieved the mask.

"Do you… still want this?" Alice said. Masquerade shook his head.

"Na. And not for the same reason as before. I'm tired of being someone who shields his face from the world. It's time a new Masquerade was introduced." Alice felt glad for him.

"That reminds me. You accidentally dropped something," Alice said, now wearing her usual, friendly smile. She placed Exedra in his palm.

"Exedra! Thanks, Alice." He then turned to the Darkus Bakugan. "Sorry about dropping you. I was going to turn around and pick you back up, but…"

"I know. You were too upset to stay another second in that mansion."

"Yeah, but I'm better now. Let's go to the others," he said.

"Glad you finally put all that behind you, brother." She said. It was no lie now. Masquerade could sense that. He could rest easy now. No more lies, guilt, bad dreams, or flashbacks would haunt him. And, apparently, he then knew that Dammy liked him for who he was. Alice went to the doorway. Dammy got up and sat beside him.

"Glad to see you're back to normal, Masquerade."

"So, I guess everyone knows I like you know, huh." Dammy nodded. "Well, anyway, good luck with finding the one for you." He started to stand, when Dammy put her hand on his shoulder.

"I already have…" She suddenly planted her lips against his. Masquerade was shocked, but happy. He never experienced anything like that before. As soon as she pulled away, the blonde was beaming. Alice was happy to tears at seeing Masquerade that cheerful, as if he hadn't been upset in the first place. All three of them walked down.

Once the three came down, Masquerade sat on the couch. When he lifted his head up to talk to the others, there were some strange reactions. Shun's eyes were wider than usual, Dan was so surprised that his eyes looked like they'd pop out of their sockets, and they all leaned in. Alice's face showed surprise and glee. She was too busy focusing on comforting him to notice before.

"What?" he asked. Dammy's eyes seemed to sparkle this time.

"Whoa…" whispered one of them. He then saw Dan counting some money, and handing it to Runo.

"I told you that he was hot without the mask," the blunette told her boyfriend of five years. Masquerade's ear twitched. Did Runo just say he was hot? Julie, giggling like a fangirl, handed Masquerade a mirror so he could see his own eyes.

"Oh," the blonde of attention said, blushing. "Hm. I guess leaving my mask behind was quite the good move!" he smirked. Masquerade explained himself to the others, and how he finally realized how much he had now. The Brawlers and Smashers were relieved that the problem was finally over. They, along with Jared, returned to Michael's mansion and sat in the living room. Runo noticed that he and Dammy were on the couch, holding hands.

"Aw. We have another couple! How cute!" she cooed. The two blushed. Dan started teasing them.

"Kiss, kiss, kiss!" the brunette chanted. Not fazed by embarrassment, they did so. Sonic started freaking out at how deeply they were kissing, though.

"Wow. They're going into full make-out mode already," Hydranoid chuckled.

"Yucky, mushy love! Aah! Gross! Nasty! Evil!" Sonic screamed. He ran circles around the open living room. Everyone laughed as Masquerade pulled away, giving everyone a devilish smirk. He stuck out his foot, making the hedgehog's head collide with the wall. The impact knocked down a picture. Michael chuckled as he walked over to it. It was him with Alice, taken about a month ago. He took the picture out and threw it in the trash.

"Thanks, Sonic. I was hoping to get that out," Michael explained, going to a closet and pulled out an old tripod camera. He liked the sepia pictures, feeling that classic items were the best. He motioned for Alice and Masquerade to go outside, and they went to the porch. Michael set up the camera and timer, and then went to the two teens.

The camera flashed, and the new picture developed. They went inside, and Michael placed it inside the frame. He hung it back up for the two twins to admire. It was then that the sound of a jet reached their ears. They looked outside to see Tails in the Cyclone.

"Yo, Tails! How are ya, bud?" Sonic asked.

"Great! If you're wondering how I got here, some dimensional stairway appeared by the lab. It's right in Station Square. The Mystic Ruins are still there as well. It's right next to Wardington," Tails explained. They walked inside, ready to plan out the rest of the day.

**Now that Masquerade's back, it looks like there's gonna be smooth sailing for our heroes. But, will something new happen within this new day? Find out next chapter, loyal readers!**


	19. A Grand Reunion

Sonic was just sitting around, when he realized something.

"Hey! If Station Square's back, I'd better go check and see if I have any mail at my apartment!" Sonic said. He zoomed off. Tails had the Cyclone transform into the Tornado, and followed him. Tails parked the plane in his hangar in the Mystic Ruins. They ran to Station Square to get to Sonic's apartment. Once there, they calmly took the elevator. They walked down the hallway, when a voice interrupted them. He had an orange package, so he was obviously the mailman.

"Excuse me!" he called. His face was red. Obviously, it was from the climb up the stairs. The man stumbled over and stopped in front of them, huffing.

"Yes?" Sonic asked. The man cleared his throat.

"I have a package and a letter for one Sonic the Hedgehog." Sonic calmly took the package and letter.

"Thank you." The mailman nodded and left. "Hm, I wonder who sent this." Sonic began to tear into the package, but Tails slugged him in the arm.

"Sonic, don't you think you should open the letter first?" he asked.

"Fine," Sonic growled, slightly irritated. He opened the envelope and began to read.

_Dear Sonic the Hedgehog,_

_I'm not sure how I should start this, for there is so much to be said. My hope is that you haven't already opened your package. But, if you have then there is no point in me surprising you. I am coming to see you. In my heart I wish for it not to be merely a visit… it's so hard to make allusions in my writing. I'm not very good at this… so I will just ask you to wait for me at your apartment. I should be there around noon-ish. And please do not open your package if you haven't. I wish for this to be as, er, never mind._

_Hope to see you soon,_

_An old friend._

"That was weird, to say the least… an old friend, huh? Stalker sounds more like it." While Sonic was preoccupied with the letter, Tails reached around him and took the package from his other hand. "Hey, give that back!" he demanded.

"No, I don't think so. Wouldn't want that temptation to get to you," Tails said, now in the air. Sonic backed off and grinned. Going near light speed, he lunged for the package. His hand was a finger's length away, when Tails suddenly vanished. His ankle was then jerked on. Tails was using one of his tails to keep Sonic in an upside-down hold.

"Tails, put me down! The blood's rushing to my head!" Sonic yelled. His arms were shaking, signaling that he was about to give out.

"I want you to promise me that you won't open the package."

"Alright! Put me down!" Sonic laughed. The pressure was getting to him. Tails dropped Sonic onto the floor. Sonic slowly sat up and let the pressure ease out. It was a good thing that he was rational. He then ushered him to his apartment, where they took a seat on the couch. Sonic looked over at the table. "Well, it's about lunch time…" He went to the cupboards and the refrigerator. "Hamburger, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, hot dogs, hot dog buns… I have enough for chili dogs!"

Sonic pulled out the necessary ingredients and a large skillet and began to make the chili. Soon, the apartment was filled with a delicious aroma. In a separate pot, he boiled some water. He placed a tablecloth on the table, got a couple good plates, a nice spoon and fork, and placed them on as well. At that time, the water was boiling, so he placed five dogs in there to simmer. Sonic was salivating at the look and smell of the food. Once they were done, he turned the fire off and poured the water out. He dumped the dogs into the skillet to let them marinade in the chili. He got out some buns and left five inside the bag. Sprinkling some water into the bag to moisten them, he placed them in the microwave to heat up. Soon, they were ready, and Sonic placed the completed chili dogs on the plates. Three were for him, and two were Tails.

"Done!" Sonic cheered. They started eating.

"You know, I've noticed that you haven't done a lot of running. Are you getting lazy?" Tails asked.

"HUH?!" Sonic yelled, freaked out. He fell out of his seat, pulling the down the tablecloth, the plates, the glasses, and the potted plant. Tails got hit with the pot, and received a few goose eggs. Sonic was about to help the fox up, but a knock at the door stopped him. While Tails favored his goose eggs, Sonic went to greet whoever was at the door. The doorknob turned. He was greeted to the sight of a tall hedgehog that had the physique of a human. He was orange with the same spike style as Sonic. Four thin, green stripes were on each head spike. He wore blue jeans and a long, black coat. The sleeves fell to the elbows. His eyes, one blue and one green, were fixated on a piece of paper. His eyes shifted in Sonic's direction. "Can I help you?" The piece of paper fell from his hand. All the hedgehog did was eye Sonic. "Excuse me? Do you need something, sir?" After about a minute, he spoke.

"… Is that you… lil' bro?" Sonic's heart skipped a beat or two.

"W-what… did you call me?" Sonic flew into shock. This couldn't be! The orange hedgehog grabbed Sonic in an embrace. Tears were rolling from his eyes.

"15 years… 15 long years of torture. It's finally over..." He whispered in Sonic's ear. Sonic stared over his shoulder. He couldn't figure out how, but he knew him. He knew the feel of his hug, his heart beat, his soul. Tails, who was still sitting on the floor, was completely baffled.

"Brother?" Tails asked. The hedgehog had to make it an effort to part from Tails. He set Tails down and wiped the tears away. Clearing his throat, he spoke.

"That's correct."

"You're my brother?! But, how?! I'm an orphan; the people that took care of me said I had no family." The orange hedgehog bit his lower lip, shutting his eyes. Both Tails and Sonic could see a clearly visible pain on his face. Sonic had opened an old wound. The hedgehog inhaled a long breath, held it, and then let it out slowly. Just as fast as the pain arrived it vanished, as if he took off a mask. He smiled.

"I'll explain later. At the moment I'm a bit puzzled with this train wreck." He pointed at the table mess as he scratched his top spike. Enjoyment crossed his face. Sonic couldn't help but smile. The hedgehog perceived Sonic's friendly look. "What?" Sonic shook his head.

"N-Nothing." he stammered.

"Eh? I can't enjoy the feel of my spike being scratched?"

"No, no! You can, I just... um." Sonic tripped on his words. The hedgehog placed a hand on Sonic's head and scratched his spike.

"It's just you like it too, am I correct?" Sonic blushed with a pleasant smile.

"Yes..." he whispered. Sonic backed up a little and the hedgehog removed his hand. "Oh! Please, come in." Sonic moved out from his way. The hedgehog stepped inside, and his eyes began wandering around Sonic's place. Sonic spoke to his back. "... Um, might I ask how you knew I like to have my spike scratched?" He gave him a smile, which his heart recognized immediately, even if his eyes did not.

"Because, that's what our father did when we looked gloomy or nervous. It always brought a smile to our faces." Sonic became anxious; he wanted to know more.

"Did our moth-" he stopped, wondering if they even had a mother, plus he did not want to open up that old wound again. The hedgehog picked up where Sonic left off.

"Did our mother have a method to make us smile? I was hoping you'd ask. What our mother would do was take her pointer finger like this…" He did the gesture. "And then she would do this." He then started to tickle under Sonic's muzzle. Sonic chuckled. He knew that feeling as plain as day. Sonic greatly enjoyed it and didn't want him to stop. He could feel it. It was only a matter of time…

"AH-AH-ACHOO! Ugh." The orange hedgehog started to laugh. "You're not allergic to your big bro are you?" Sonic sniffed.

"Uh... bless me."

"I got a little to close to your nose didn't I, hahaha!" Sonic grinned, but the expression soon after changed into an uneasy look on his face. Could he trust him? Even though Sonic felt he knew him, his logic wanted to make sure of everything. Get all of the facts straight and in order, like Tails did.

"Are you-" Sonic was quickly interrupted.

"If you have doubt, then open your package. At this point in time, think of it more as a gift if it helps." Sonic nodded and took up the orange present. Tails stood and moved to Sonic's side, looking over his shoulder. He began to unwrap it slowly as if not wanting to rip the paper. He had finished after what seemed like hours to him. It was a pine wood picture frame with a photo behind glass. In front of a cottage stood three people. The first a tall, orange-yellow hedgehog, male, green eyes, dressed in a brown jacket, black denim jeans, black boots, and green tinted pilot goggles hung from around his neck. The second was a shorter, blue hedgehog, female, blue eyes, wearing a white dress shirt, tan tied pants, black knee height socks, tabi sandals, a maroon apron, and a matching color bandanna was tied around her neck. In her arms she held a baby wrapped in a light blue blanket, a blue hedgehog, green eyes, reaching for his mother's nose. Standing in the front between the elder foxes was an orange hedgehog, one blue eye and green eye, wearing tan shorts and a black vest, bare foot. All were smiling.

"I-is... t-this?" Sonic stuttered. Tails took a seat at the table, already knowing what he was about to say. A part of him felt happy for Sonic, another was jealous, and the third was torn.

"Yes, our family... If it wouldn't be too much to ask, I'd rather not tell you what happened right now. I need time to prepare my emotions for the revisit," he said calmly.

"Ok, I understand." Sonic opened his arms to the fox, offering an embrace. He accepted. They both walked to one another, arms open, and the orange hedgehog knelt down. They held each other closely. The older lifted Sonic off the ground. Tears flowed from both their eyes. A love long lost had now been restored. Nothing could tear apart that moment, except...

"SONIC! There you… TAILS?! What happened to you!?" Amy stood in the doorway staring slack jawed at Tails. Tails covered his head gently. "Oh this? Nothing." Amy rushed to his side.

"Here, Tails, let me help you. How did this happen?"

"A certain little hedgehog happened," Tails grumbled. Amy's sights were immediately fixed on the orange hedgehog. He rolled his eyes.

"Oh no…" Amy held out her wrist and the ring on it glowed. Her Piko Piko Hammer magically appeared in her hand in a flash of light. The hedgehog set Sonic down. His look immediately changed into something more serious and fierce. Amy made the first move by bolting at him with her hammer behind her, preparing to strike. She swung her hammer at his face, but he caught it with ease and brandished claws into the head of the hammer, holding on tight. Amy could not break the grasp he had, so she threw a punch. In one swift move he released the hammer while simultaneously grabbing her fist, twisting, and forcing her into an arm lock. Amy yelped at the sudden movement.

"You made the wrong assumption. You do know what assuming does right; it makes an ASS out of YOU and ME." He released her with a slight shove. Amy stumbled forwards.

"Not a good idea," Sonic admonished.

"She won't attack me again," he said confidently.

"What makes you think that?" Amy asked as she turned to him and gave a treat with her hammer.

"Because, I know much more painful moves." He brandished claws from both hands at her. Amy gulped.

"W-who are you?" He stood up straight, putting a stupid look on his face.

"Wow, I was too caught up in the reminiscing that I forgot to give my own name. If our mother was here, I'd be in some serious trouble. But I digress; my name is Speedy the Hedgehog. I'm Sonic's older brother." And he bowed. Sonic realized that Sonic was his real name. That was a relief.

"Wh-what?! BROTHER?!" Amy was so stunned that she didn't realize she shouted.

"AMY! Calm down, yes, brother. You heard correctly," Tails put in. Speedy handed Amy the picture. Amy gazed at it. Father, mother, and two sons. They all looked so happy.

"Wait a second," Amy said. She lifted her head and scanned the room. "Um, where are these two?" She pointed to Sonic's and Speedy's parents.

"Amy…" Tails spoke out. Amy turned to him, and he shook his head. Amy nodded understandingly.

'How…? Why….?' she thought. Every beat in Sonic's and Speedy's heart was like a knife had stabbed it. Speedy stared down at him, and wrapped his hands around Sonic's head.

"… Why me?" Sonic whimpered. Seeing Sonic as he was made her feel guilty. She put away her hammer.

"I-I'm sorry," Amy whispered. Speedy looked back up at Amy.

"There is nothing for you to be sorry for, Amy. This morning has held too much emotion in it. Think of it as an overload. The heart can only take so much," he calmly reassured her. He slid down to Sonic's level, and the blue hedgehog shifted to cry over his shoulder, holding him in what seemed like a death lock. As he placed his head on Sonic's shoulder, Speedy couldn't help but pinch a few tears off himself. Suddenly, a breeze blew in an open window in the kitchen. It reached their faces, drying the tears. Speedy smiled. "… Thank you, Mother." He slowly pulled away from Sonic, placing the younger one's hands together and cupping his around them. Sonic stared at him, a few tears still falling from his eyes. Speedy gave him a loving smile, one similar to what their mother would give to them. He then kissed him on the forehead, and Sonic felt his mind relax. All of his troubles were abruptly gone, as if they had never taken place. Speedy stood up. The room felt oddly peaceful.

(If only all brothers were that caring toward each other without either saying it's too strange.)

"... Awkward," Tails remarked.

"No kidding," Amy said. The siblings lightly laughed at the comments. Speedy stood, scratching Sonic's spike.

"So, Sonic, how about I help you clean up this mess." Speedy gestured to the table. Sonic wiped his eyes.

"Sure, but try to be careful," Sonic replied

"Understood."

"... I'm not giving you an order."

"I know but, that's just how I was raised by our mother." Sonic returned a smile.

"Understood."

"Hey, are you mocking me?" He playfully crossed his arms.

"Maybe," Sonic said, giving an innocent, playful shrug. He smiled.

"Alright, alright, enough. Let's focus on the task at hand, shall we?"

"Ok." While Sonic and Speedy cleaned up the mess, Amy tended to Tails' injuries.

"Wow, Sonic, you sure did a number to Tails' head." He whispered to Sonic.

"Well, that was the plant. I wanted to, since he called me lazy for not running as much, but I let it slide.

"Ha, you're as rational as our father. If you were as fierce as our mother and had the same view on your convictions as well, that would be scary..." Speedy said as he flung the table cloth to cover the table.

"What do you mean?" Sonic asked as he set the potted plant in the center of the table.

"Well, our mother was always a firm believer in her teachings and well, beliefs. Which were her mother's and her mother's before that." Speedy grabbed the spilled glasses of pop and the plates. He moved into the kitchen, setting both of them into the sink. Sonic frowned.

"All that hard work and it all went to waste." Speedy leaned against the counter opposite of the window. There he stood, staring up at the clouds. "Something wrong?" Sonic asked concernedly. He ignored his question.

"Her teachings might even have descended through generations long since forgotten." He whispered and grabbed a gold chain hidden by his fur and pulling it over his head. At the end was a gold, heart shaped locket. He wound a knob on the side, and after three twists it clicked and flipped open. A gear box on one half started to play a gentle tune. On the other half of the heart, a picture of their mother, smiling her loving smile.

"Is that our mother's?" Sonic asked, sitting on the counter and looking over his shoulder. "She looks so beautiful!" Speedy sniffed and wiped his eyes with his wrist.

"This was our father's and indeed she does. Our mother never lived in regret. Whenever someone would question her logic, she would need to be stopped by our father from pummeling the person or people. It's funny; Father was the one who taught me how to fight. Mother was the one who taught me knowledge and matters of the heart. But, Father was the more rational one. Always making sure no blood was unnecessarily shed by our mother... Both of their teachings had made me balanced; no words can express my gratitude."

"I wish I could have known them..." Disappointment hung in Sonic's voice. Speedy tightly clenched his teeth and leaned his head back, preventing the tears from rolling down his face.

"I will never forget them. I shall carry on their legacy and pass it on to my children. And their children to theirs. This locket shall become an heirloom for our generations, never to leave the bloodline." Speedy said through his teeth. He choked his tears back, his face now pleasant. "Regret kills the heart slowly; that's what Mother used to tell me. Hold on to what you believe in and those you love. With these two things in your heart, your soul shall soar. You will have no limits to what you can accomplish! Our parents will never be just a memory to us. They live on inside of me and you, Sonic. Their hearts beat in synchronization with ours. They are our strength, they are our compassion. We are them." The music stopped, he clicked the locket shut, and placed it back around his neck. It disappeared inside his fur.

Speedy's words had sparked a sort of intense energy inside of Sonic. To him it felt like he had awoken from a nightmare. He felt safe, protected by him and his parents. For the first time in a long time, he felt as if she found his family. Sonic rotated Speedy to him and hugged him tightly. Not to feel comfort; it was the hug of a bond between siblings. Looking into his eyes, Sonic gave a look, pure, from the bottom of his heart.

"Welcome home, big brother." and nestled his head into the orange fur on his chest. Speedy's tears welled and he hugged back.

"Glad to be home." Amy couldn't help but look in awe of their bond. Tails rolled his eyes out of probable jealousy.

"Oh pah-leeze. Get a room you two." Amy shot a poisonous glare at Tails.

"Tails! That was uncalled for!" Amy shouted. Laughter erupted from the siblings.

"What, I was just saying-"

"-That you're just jealous?" Sonic interjected. Tails' eyes flared at the blue hedgehog. Tails shut his eyes, trying to calm down. He let out a heavy sigh.

"Whatever, Sonic."

"Bro..." Sonic looked at his big brother.

"Hm?"

"Don't be like that. You really shouldn't spark an argument or fight," he admonished.

"I'm sorry, Tails," he apologized.

"It's fine... I... I'm still trying to find a way to accept this. It's so hard; you have an actual blood line big bro. Where does that leave me?" Tails' heartstrings were tearing at one another. Sonic released Speedy, hopped down and walked over to Tails.

"Tails, you are family, and do not think otherwise. When I cared for you, I knew what it was like to have a close friend. To me, you ARE a brother." Sonic hugged him as he did to Speedy. Tails began to cry. Speedy smiled upon the two, not interfering.

"... Tails, thank you for being there for my little bro. Truly, I thank you from the bottom of my heart." Speedy placed a hand over his heart and bowed to Tails.

"Ahem. Uh, yeah, no problem." Tails returned Speedy his own form of appreciation. Speedy grinned.

"Haha, guess this make the two of us brothers then, Tails. Through our relation with Sonic, that is."

"I guess so," Tails said happily. Amidst all of the warm feelings, Amy was impatiently tapping her foot, waiting to get Sonic back for herself. She even pretended to check a watch on her wrist, in hopes that one of them would notice her gesture.

"Hey, Tails, don't make me let go; I think Amy is about to loose all of her patience and leave." Sonic whispered in Tails' ear. Tails smirked and shoved Sonic.

"He's all yours, Amy." Sonic glared at him.

"Tails, if my brother wasn't here right now, I would have socked you a good one."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, keep talking," Tails said as he made a yapping motion with his hand. Amy glomped Sonic, hugging him tightly. Sonic shook his fist at Tails. He stuck his tongue out at him.

"Ah yes, we're just one big happy family now," Speedy sarcastically poked in. Amy released him and went to continue treating Tails' injuries. Sonic looked at him with a sour expression, but calmed. "Like father like son."

"You got that right." Sonic said as he stood tall. Amy finished wrapping Tails' head in medical bandage that Sonic had so conveniently lying around the house.

"There you go Tails, good as new," Amy giggled. Speedy sat at the table, observing how gentle Amy was with Tails. Just like their mother.

"So, Sonic."

"What?" Sonic asked.

"Shall we do something to pass the time?"

"Umm... hmm... I could show you around Station Square. How does that sound, just the two of us?"

"Sure." Speedy looked to Amy and Tails. "You two going to be okay here?" They nodded. Sonic took Speedy's wrist and lead him from the apartment. Sonic hit the button to go up on the elevator.

"I thought we needed to go down to leave the building."

"We do; I just want to bring you to the roof so you can get a view of the city from up high." The doors opened.

"Alright. You know your way around." The two entered the elevator. Sonic hit the button to rise to the roof.

"Yuck, I hate elevator music," Sonic said as he rolled his eyes. Speedy laughed.

"I don't care much for it either." The doors open again as they reached the top floor. They stepped out and move to a spot on the edge. Sonic put his legs trough the bars on the guardrail. Speedy's eyes looked around the city. After a few minutes of silence, he spoke. "You ready to show me around?" Sonic nodded. He stood up and pulled Speedy back to the elevator. They both left the building, Sonic hanging on to his brother's arm to make sure they didn't get separated. The two walked and walked to several places like the park, the train station, the beach, and Sonic's favorite ice cream parlor, where they bumped into Cream.

"Hey, Sonic!" Cream happily greeted him.

"Hey, Cream, how are you?"

"I'm fine. Wooow... who is this?" Cream asked awing at the orange hedgehog.

"My name is Speedy the Hedgehog. I'm this young one's older brother." He bowed to her.

"Sonic, I didn't know you had an older brother." Cream said.

"Yeah, me neither, until he showed up just a few hours ago." Cheese was hiding behind Cream.

"And who's this little one?" Speedy asked kindly.

"Oh this is my Chao. Say hello, Cheese." Cheese let out a nervous,

"Chao." Cream's cell phone buzzed.

"Ah, excuse me."

"It's fine," Speedy said. Cream turned her back to them.

"Hello? Oh, hi, Amy..."

"She seems sweet." Speedy said to Sonic as they shifted to the counter to buy some ice cream.

"Chocolate, two scoops please," Sonic said.

"And I'll have vanilla, two scoops as well please," Speedy said. They took a seat at a booth once they had gotten and paid for the ice cream.

"Crean and Tails like each other a little. But I think Cream's crush is a bit bigger," Sonic told him. Speedy smiled.

"Ok, four o'clock. Alright, talk to you later." Cream shut her phone. "Hey, I'm back." Cream said, taking a seat next across from them. Speedy brought his tongue away from the ice cream.

"Good news?" he asked.

"Well, that depends on how you look at it." Speedy lightly laughed.

"Playing coy are we?" Cream blushed.

"Sorry, Cream, right? I will speak no further into the matter."

"Thank you. You know, you remind me of a fox."

"Hm? How so?" He asked.

"You're sly and sneaky." Speedy smirked.

"And you expected any different? I shall take that as a compliment." Cream shed a look of disappointment.

"Something the matter, Cream?" Sonic asked concernedly.

"No, I'm fine, just lost in my head, that's all." Sonic set a hand on Cream's shoulder.

"Okay, but if you want to talk, we're all here for you."

"Thanks." And she smiled to Sonic.

"Well now, isn't that cute."

"Don't you dare, big bro," Sonic said seriously.

"Okay, my apologies."

"... Your ice cream is melting," Cream pointed out to Speedy. He lifted his hand, observing the ice cream trickle down the back of his hand.

"So it is. It's going to take a while to get this completely out of my fur." He started to bite chunks from what remained on the cone.

"I wonder what Mother is thinking about you doing that."

"Now there's a good question and for the better that I not know."

"Who was your mother?" Cream asked. Speedy sat back in silence for a short period of time, then brandished the locket from his coat and this time clicked the knob. It sprung open, but there was no music. He handed it to Cream.

"Wow, she's so pretty!" A voice sounded from behind Speedy.

"Who is, Cream?" He jumped slightly.

"Oh, hi, Mom, and this is who's so pretty." Cream handed Vanilla the locket.

"Wow, she is gorgeous. Who is she?"

"My and Sonic's mother." Speedy said.

"Pardon me, your AND Sonic's mother?"

"Yep, turns out Sonic has an older brother. This is him." Speedy stood and took Vanilla's hand.

"Speedy the Hedgehog. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." He placed his other hand over his heart and kissed her hand. Vanilla blushed.

"My, you are quite the gentleman."

"Well, that's how my mother raised me, to show proper etiquette to all women."

"Ah-ha! So that's why you bowed your head to every lady we passed," Sonic abruptly put in.

"Formalities, Sonic, if that is what you are getting at." He returned.

"Well I thought it was very sweet of you." She took Speedy's chin with her hand and kissed his forehead.

"Thanks, Milady," he said.

"Oh, so now it's _Milady_; you're whipped, bro," Sonic laughed.

"I'd watch what you say, little one. Our mother is always listening."

"Oh, you mean she is..." Vanilla didn't want to finish. Speedy took a deep breath and let it out.

"Sad but true. Yes, she has passed on along with our father."

"I'm so sorry to hear that," Vanilla sympathized.

"You need not concern yourself in this affair. What has been done can't be undone."

"Live without regret, right brother?" Sonic said.

"Yes, live without regret," he agreed. Cream cocked an eyebrow.

"Live without regret?" she asked

"That's how our mother lived, she used to tell me all the time, regret kills the heart slowly. If you live in your past you will be unable to see what beauty has been set before you."

"What was your mother's name?" Vanilla asked.

"Alicia and our father's name, Joshua."

"Why Sonic and Speedy, then?" Vanilla asked. He shook his head.

"I'll explain some other time. I'd rather not take the visit back into our past."

"Ok, I understand." Vanilla said as she closed the locket and handed the locket back to him. He accepted it back with a feeling of gratitude for their kind compliments of their mother. Cream looked at the clock on her phone.

"It's three thirty. Any chance you two could come with me?"

"Sure, what for?" Sonic asked.

"You'll see." Cream took both of their wrists and pulled them out of the parlor. They walked to the train station. "Hello, three tickets to the Mystic Ruins, please." Speedy and Sonic sat on a bench in wonder of Cream's intentions.

"Where do you think she is taking us, Speedy?" He scratched his forehead.

"Unsure. It couldn't be anywhere bad though."

"Yeah, but I'm anxious."

"I'd swallow that anxiety if I were you. It'll make the trip seem so much longer." Cream walked over to them.

"Ready guys?"

"Sure, I guess." Sonic said, standing up.

"Hey you three!" Amy shouted out from atop the stairs

"Amy?!" Sonic shivered.

"Well now, what've we here?" Speedy curiously said. The three of them had their tickets checked and walked through the rotating gates. They walked up to Amy.

"Hey, Ames," Sonic said.

"Hello, Amy. Nice to see you again," Speedy happily stated.

"Well, you won't be seeing me for long." Amy held out a bandanna to each of them. Speedy took one.

"I'm guessing we have to cover our eyes then?"

"What gives, Ames?" Sonic asked, taking his. She smiled devilishly.

"I 'gives' you both a surprise when we get to where we are going."

"Just do what she says, Sonic, no point in arguing." Speedy advised Sonic.

"Alright, if you say so." So, they covered their eyes. Tails guided Sonic and Amy guided Speedy to the train. Sonic had his arms reached out to avoid walking into anything. Speedy, on the other hand, gave Amy his faith and walked with his hands in his jeans pockets. They reached the train and took their seats. Sonic put a finger on his bandanna and started to lift. Amy slapped his hand.

"Ow!" he yelped. Speedy heard the snap and broke into laughter.

"What did I just tell you, Sonic?"

"Yeah, yeah, swallow your anxiety."

"Good." Speedy leaned his head back against the window, relaxing his muscles. The train started to move. They remained in silence; all but the sound of Cream knocking her feet up against the seat could be heard for a few minutes.

"... This is uneasy. But, I can't just openly ask for a conversation to be started. Nor could I start one without it being awkward. So, this is a dilemma," Speedy cut in to the quiet.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that." Sonic said, now in the same relaxed position as his brother.

"What?"

"I think you may have started something."

"A short topic though. It could only be carried for so long." Cream giggled at them.

"Eh? Does this entertain you, miss rabbit?" Speedy asked her, lifting his head.

"No, it's the position you two are in while talking. It's like a bored and don't care chat."

"Heh, you may be right." Speedy leaned back again.

"... What, that's it? I thought you had something going there," Amy spoke out of the blue. Speedy laughed.

"Will you enlighten us then?"

"I, um... weather?" Amy stumbled in mid-thought. Speedy's laughter hardened.

"You see, awkward."

"Ha, ha, ha," Amy snobbishly said.

"I'm sorry, Amy." He wiped a tear from his eye with his knuckle, being careful not to remove the bandanna.

"Argh! This bandanna is making my eyelids so itchy!" Sonic groaned. The train made a screeching noise.

"Oh, what do you know, we're here." Amy said.

"Good, can I take this off now?" Sonic said eagerly.

"I never said you could. So, no, not yet."

"Dang, Amy, you can be so cruel and hard headed sometimes." Speedy set his right hand on Sonic's left shoulder and traced up the top of his ear. "Speedy, what are you- OW, OW, OW!!" He tugged sharply upwards on the ear.

"This is what our mother would do when I spoke out of turn," he said casually and released his ear.

"JERK!" Sonic yelled, caressing his ear. Speedy gave an evil smile.

"Do you what me to demonstrate onto you what our mother would do if we had an attitude about it?" He stood, looking down on him. Sonic's stomach sank.

"N-no!" he hastily said.

"That's what I thought. Well, shall we go?"

"Sure. I will have to remember that move, Speedy, thanks." Amy placed her hands on Speedy's shoulders and started to guide him. Cream helped Sonic up from the seat, doing as Amy was. Speedy had no problem with the steps, but Sonic had several difficulties. Speedy didn't use the railing, yet Sonic held onto it so tightly that Cream had to pull him down the stairs. Speedy did not stumble on the last step; Sonic fell flat on his face.

"You doing okay, Sonic?" Speedy innocently asked.

"Do you need to ask?" he returned, slightly frustrated with the stupid question.

"C'mon, Sonic." Cream helped Sonic up, guiding him once again.

"Ok you two, one more flight of stairs." Amy said.

"Then can we take these off?" Sonic groaned.

"Just walk, Sonic." Amy almost shouted, annoyed with his consecutive question.

"Stone steps?" Speedy guessed at.

"How could you tell?" Amy asked.

"I know the feel beneath my shoes." Amy giggled.

"You're an odd one," she said. He smiled.

"Aren't we all in our own way?"

"Hmm... I suppose your right, last step." A breeze blew on Speedy's face.

"What a great day."

"Hm?" Cream asked.

"The breeze to my face, the sun bathing my fur in warmth, the calm ebb of the ocean, the steady ground beneath my feet. Reminds me of how my mother described the concept of love."

"How so?" Cream asked.

"Love between two people is like how I described the environment. When two people gaze into one another's eye they can feel their heart warmed just as this sun is doing to me. Their minds are soothed like the ebbing sound of the sea. Their bodies wrapped in its feel. The dance of the soul's flame, its serenade." Amy stared at him with amazement.

"How lovely." Cream adored, leading Sonic up the last step.

"So, Amy, shall we?" Speedy crossed his arms.

"Shall we what?" Amy said dumbly.

"Continue with wherever you were leading us."

"Oh, right." Amy took his shoulders again, and led him to a building, Cream followed up with Sonic. Amy turned the door knob and led Speedy inside, Sonic with Cream.

"Ok you two, take off the bandannas." Amy said, shutting the door. They did, but the room was pitch black.

"What's with the-" Sonic started. Amy flipped a light switch.

"SURPRISE!!"

**Sonic has a brother, and the two have been given a suprise! Want to know what it is? Find out in the next chapter!**


	20. The Party

"SURPRISE!!" Speedy jumped at the shout and Sonic jumped on him, wrapping his legs around his chest while his arms grappled his neck.

"Sonic... get off," he choked out. Sonic dropped down on his butt, lied down, and blinked up at the ceiling.

"You okay, Sonic?" Speedy asked as he turned to stare down at him. All Sonic did was sigh. Speedy laughed, turning back to the group that now stood before them. Tails, Vanilla, the Brawlers, the other Smashers, Michael, and Jared were there. "What is all this for!?" He happily exclaimed.

"A welcoming party for you, Speedy," Amy said from behind.

"Wow... thank you Amy!"

"You're welcome. Figured you might like a celebration for you and Sonic's reunion. Special, just for you two." She smiled to him.

"This is one of the most thoughtful things I have ever received," he said, tearing up.

"You alright?" Sonic asked. He wiped his eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Happy to tears, that's all."

"Aww, we made him cry." Samus spoke out, wearing a pink version of her Zero Suit. He looked up at her, and then quickly looked away, blushing. "Hm? What's wrong? She asked.

"I, uh, do you always walk around like that?" Speedy shakily questioned.

"No, but it's not that bad," she answered back. He looked back at her, still blushing.

"My mother would kill me right now if she saw me with you dressed like you are. I mean no offense by that." He gulped. "My mother always felt I should never look in the direction of a woman whose chest is showing, even by skin-tight clothing." His blush reddened. Samus giggled and activated her Final Smash, regaining her Power Suit. Speedy was a little surprised at that.

"That better?" she asked. He nodded.

"Thank you."

"Was your mother that strict?" Christopher asked quizzically.

"And then some. If she did catch me looking upon your figure, she would have smacked my knuckles with a yardstick. She had high expectations."

"Why do you speak of her in the past tense?" Ganondorf asked. Cream started to wave her hand back and forth across her neck.

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!" Cream said to herself.

"... Do you all wish to know that happened? I must warn you. This will spoil the mood of the party." Sonic sat up, wishing to know the story. "Alright, this is how it happened..."

--Flashback--

It was a hot day, and the sibling's parents worked in the garden, harvesting the crops they had planted.

"Dear, what should we have for dinner tonight?" Alicia asked Joshua.

"I'm not sure. Why don't we ask Speedy?" Joshua suggested. Alicia nodded.

"It has been a long time since we had what he liked. Sure, go ask him, this will surely brighten up his day." She smiled that loving smile of hers. Joshua stood, walking out front. The orange hedgehog sat on the front steps of the cottage, dangling a toy above the baby known as Sonic's face. He batted at the small plushy with curiosity.

"Speedy? There you are." Takeshi said.

"Right where you left me, Father. Do you need something?" Speedy replied.

"I do, actually, your mother would like to know what you want for dinner tonight." While Speedy's attention was distracted, Sonic grabbed the toy.

"Oh, hey." He began to chew on it, grinning with triumph over his older brother.

"Ah, he's teething. Let him be, Speedy."

"Ok, you were asking about dinner?" Speedy put the main topic back in motion.

"Yes, dinner, what do-" He stopped. He sensed something coming for them. An ax flew by Joshua's head and landed into the door. Hooping and hollering could be heard behind him. A group of seven brutes out for blood.

"Speedy, take Sonic and get in the house. Lock the door."

"But, fath-"

"I SAID NOW!" Joshua yelled. Speedy did as commanded. He lifted up the basket, carrying his young brother into the house. He locked the door and peeked out of the mail slot in the door. Their mother and father stood at the gate, blocking the vagabond group's entry. Raised voices erupted from their parents. The group's leader lost his patience and struck their mother's head out of nowhere. The impact was so hard that she had died before she hit the ground. Joshua retaliated; he drew out his claws and tore into the murderer's throat, killing him. The remainder of the group surrounded Joshua and beat him down. Their attention shifted to the cottage. Speedy noticed this and picked up Sonic from the basket, running for the entry to the cellar that lay in the house. The whole time, Sonic had a naive smile on his face, unaware of the tragedy that was taking place. He hid him and himself in a crawlspace, big enough for the both of them but, too small for the murderer's to reach them inside. Sonic started to laugh.

"No, Sonic, stop." He placed a finger on his lips, hushing him. He giggled, thinking it was a game. He heard voices.

"What do ya say boys? LET'S BURN THE PLACE!!" Smoke soon filled the cottage. Speedy took his vest off and covered Sonic's mouth and nose. Fire was everywhere he looked. He stumbled outside. The vagabonds had left, heading for the settlement that was down the trail from where they lived. All their friends and remaining family would be slaughtered like animals. Speedy fell to his knees by their parents' side, Sonic still laughing. He set Sonic down by his mother. He took one of her spikes and played with it as Speedy began to cry.

"...S-Sp-ee-dy..." His father was barely clinging to life. Speedy look at his father with hope.

"Father?"

"Your mother...is dead...Speedy-" He coughed up blood. "-I will soon follow her."

"No, father you can't!" Speedy pleaded, tears streaming down his face.

"You must... Sonic, take care... of your little brother." He reached down his shirt and pulled out the heart locket. He slid it over his neck and offered it to Speedy. "Take this; remember your mother." Speedy took it, placing it to his heart. He cried effusively.

"F-Father..." he grabbed his hand.

"Don't cry, we will... see each other again, we are just... going on a vacation... I love you son. So much." Joshua pulled Alicia's limp body close to him and cried to his final breath. Speedy wept over their parents' lifeless bodies.

"Come back, come back..." He cried. Once the fire and smoke had cleared, Speedy buried his parents on the land they shared their love for one another. He then took Sonic, the innocent son, to another village near their area on the map. They had spent the rest of Sonic's first year with one another. In that time, Speedy continued to cry himself to sleep. Soon after, they were separated due to an attack by the vagabonds. He escaped before they reached their destination, of course. He then wandered for years searching for his brother, with no such luck.

--End flashback--

"...And that's what happened." Speedy was crying badly. Sonic was crying noiselessly. There were no whimpers of pain; his tears just flowed freely from his eyes. The other girls couldn't look up at the hedgehog, the story hurt so much. Mewtwo was leaned up against the wall with his eyes closed. Tails and Masquerade stood, grinding their teeth. Rage flooded the hedgehog to the point that he had drawn his claws into the palms of his fists. Blood and tears dripped steadily to the floor. Speedy walked past the group and down the hall into Tails' room. He sat on the bed and cried into his palms, the blood and tears mixing. Sonic's heart suddenly filled with hate. He rose his fists up and slammed the floor, cracking the hardwood.

"Big brother..." Sonic whined.

"They didn't deserve to die..." Dan said, tears hanging in his eyes. Sonic impulsively darted into the room and fell into his brother, crying steadily on his chest.

"Big brother..." Sonic wrapped his arms around him. Speedy drew his claws back and did the same. Sonic didn't care that they had blood on them. "Big brother... Speedy..." Sonic continued to cry. There was no more joy, no more happiness to be found. It had died in the pit of anguish. "I don't want you to leave me..." Sonic sobbed. He wiped his eyes of the blood.

"... I won't; I made a promise. Little bro... I love you." He whispered in his ear.

"I love you, too." He tried to wear a smile, but only more tears arose. For what seemed like hours, the hangar lay in a state of sorrow. Speedy stood after he felt he had the nerve to face everyone. He sighed.

"I really didn't want to do that."

"Do what?" Sonic asked, quieting his whine.

"Telling everyone about that tragedy. This was supposed to be a joyous time. One where I could make new friends, but instead I fill everyone with grief. I feel so stupid!" Speedy walked out of the room to see how everyone else was fairing. "... I'm sorry Amy, everyone. I ruined this for you."

"No, you did the right thing in telling all of us. Now that we know your pain, we can help you when you need to vent about it." Amy said. Ganondorf rolled his eyes, wishing he was somewhere else when Amy said that.

"Thank you Amy, I appreciate it. And as for the black-armored one, I won't bug you. I can see that you don't care much for that type of activity." He smiled weakly.

"Hmm, I think you and I are going to become fast friends." Ganondorf cracked a smile.

"We're here for you, even though we just met. I consider you as a little brother." Dan said.

"Sorry to break that train of thought, but how old are you?"

"17," Dan replied confidently.

"That makes you MY little brother, I'm 21." Speedy's smile widened. Dan sighed.

"Shoot." Speedy laughed, bringing everyone's spirits up so much that they joined in. Sonic wandered in the room, rubbing his eyes.

"What's so funny?"

"Dan just labeled Speedy his younger brother, when he himself is older than Dan," Shun said. Sonic looked at Dan, grinning a little.

"Good one, Dan."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Dan groaned.

"Well, I think that enough cheer has returned to have the party, what do you say?" Speedy said. Everyone reeled in surprise.

"Are you serious?" Runo asked.

"Our mother and father would not want Sonic, I, or any of my friends to continually lament over them. They would wish for us to have joy in our lives."

"Well, if you put it like that. Sure, why not." Amy said.

"Dibs on the cake!" Dan zipped over to the table. Amy walked up to Speedy and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Thank you," she said.

"For what?" He honestly had no clue as to what she was talking about.

"For saving the party; for once in my life it hasn't gone completely awry."

"You're welcome." He looked up at everyone. "Hey, I'm going to go take a short walk, help clear my head. I'll be back though, so save me some cake." He pointed at the table. Speedy walked to the door and grabbed the knob, but his wrist was grabbed.

"Mind if I join you?" Sonic gave him a smile, but not just the ordinary. It was one parallel to their mother's loving one.

"You needn't ask." He opened the door and walked out with Sonic, both of them next to each other. An hour passed, and the sun was setting. The two walked back into the hangar. Speedy's and Sonic's hearts were beating in at the same pace.

"There you two are." Amy sounded relieved.

"Hey, Ames." Sonic said

"So, how are you doing?" Speedy asked.

"I sent Dan home. He devoured the last pieces of cake without you. Sorry." Sonic started to laugh.

"You should have made some loin tips."

"I should have, but I didn't." Amy noticed Speedy was blushing. "What's with you?"

"Oh, Sonic told me about your last name so…" He pulled a rose out from behind his back. "… I got this for you. A rose for a Rose." She accepted it, not knowing what to think. "Consider it an apology for me grabbing you so brusquely earlier."

"Apology accepted." She sniffed at the rose.

"Glad you like it." Amy blushed. "Where's everyone else?" Speedy added.

"They left; sorry about that. I tried to convince them to stay."

"Ah, it's fine. I'm sure they had more important things to do." Speedy walked over to the couch. Suddenly and out of nowhere came another,

"SURPRISE!!" Everyone jumped out.

"Are you kidding me!?" Speedy laughed.

"What do you say we try this again?" Amy smiled.

"Sure, get things off on the right foot." Amy clapped her hands. Tails walked in from the hangar, carrying the cake, which had an addition to it: sparklers.

"Happy reunion Speedy, Sonic," Vanilla said, following up Tails. Speedy's lip quivered, trying his hardest not to cry again, but it was just too hard.

"Thank you everyone. I feel right at home." Sonic walked up behind his brother and embraced him. He returned the favor.

"Let the party begin!" Julio said as he hit the on button on the boom box he brought over. And so it did. They danced, they talked, they ate, and they danced some more. Everything was just perfect. Once the sun set, mostly everyone went home. Sonic, Speedy, Amy, and Tails cleaned up.

"Thanks for sticking around, you guys," Tails said, setting a lamp upright. "This makes the cleanup a bit easier." He flicked the switch a few times. "Bulb's broken… hey, big bro?" He unscrewed the light bulb.

"Yeah?" Sonic and Speedy responded. Tails rolled his eyes.

"Speedy?" Tails rephrased. Speedy chuckled.

"You need something?" he asked.

"Yeah." He tossed the bulb to him, and he caught it. "Need a new bulb."

"Yeah, so? Sonic knows this place better than me." Speedy tossed the bulb to Sonic.

"Um, I don't feel like it." Sonic tossed it to Amy. She sighed.

"As usual, it falls on me." She left them and walked into the hangar. Seconds later a loud crash was heard from behind the door. Everyone ran in. Amy lay on the ground, motionless. Speedy rushed to her side and knelt down beside her.

"Amy! Amy! Are you okay?!"

"Ohhh... that hurt..." Amy groaned. Speedy helped her sit up.

"Whew, I thought you were dead there for a second." He stroked her cheek.

"That's a little...extreme bro." Sonic gave him a curious look.

"I don't want to deal with the death of a new friend, that simple, little bro." His voice was almost sharp. Sonic nodded and picked up the bulbs.

"I'll take care of this." Sonic left the hangar to replace the bulb. Speedy gently set Amy down on the couch. Amy smiled sweetly to him, he to her.

"Why are you so gentle with me?" Amy asked.

"The position you were in; lying on the floor on your side with your back to me. It was the very same position my mother was in after she was murdered. I feared that I was reliving that moment." Sonic twisted the light bulb in, listening carefully to his brother. "For so long that memory has haunted me. It refuses to leave; it was so terrifying." He reached into his coat pocket, tightly grasping the heart locket. The light flashed, slightly surprising Sonic.

"Maybe you should make sure it's off next time." Amy started to laugh, but a sharp pain shot into her ribs. She grabbed at her right side, wincing.

"Easy, Amy." Speedy was now concerned that Amy may be more hurt than she let on.

"I'm fine," she coughed.

"Maybe we should take you to the hospital," he advised.

"It's too late; the train doesn't run at this hour. Plus, me moving at sonic speed could hurt her," Sonic said.

"We can use my plane then," Tails offered.

"Alright, that'll work." Speedy took up Amy once more, bringing her to the plane. He handed her to Tails, who flew up into the plane. He strapped her in tight enough to hold her in, but loose enough so it wouldn't bother her. Tails hopped in the cockpit and started the plane, hitting a button to open the hangar door.

"Fly smoothly!" they yelled over the plane engine. Tails gave them a thumb's up. The plane rolled forward, steadily gaining speed. Tails left the ground to a slow incline to avoid exposing Amy to a lot G-force.

"Don't you die, Amy," Speedy said aloud. Sonic's eyes shot in his direction.

"What was that?"

"Nothing." He sighed. "What now?"

"Do you have a thing for Amy?" Sonic wanted an answer.

"It's in my nature to be concerned for another. You're digging to deep, bro."

"Right..." Sonic's tone was that of disbelief. Speedy sighed.

"Shall we retire?"

"Whatever." Sonic headed back into the hangar. Speedy stared to follow, but he stopped to gaze up at the stars.

"It's clear tonight. Hmm, maybe I'll take a walk." So, he walked around the hangar and quietly strolled into the woods. He took the locket out and clicked it open. "Time for a little chat, I suppose." He stumbled upon a clearing in the woods and lay down in the cool, green grass on his back. He shut his eyes and prayed for his mother. "Mother, any chance I can take up a minute or two of your time?" He opened his eyes, and the stars were in the outline of his mother. "Hello, Mom."

(To have a bond like that would be cool.)

"Hello, son," she said back.

"Can't tell you how glad I am to see your face" He smiled.

"Wrong! You say 'I can't'." He sighed.

"Not this again, please. Not now."

"Alright, you're just lucky I can't reach you from up here." Alicia said.

"And for that I'm a tiny bit thankful. Anyway, I digress; did you witness that little accident a minute ago by any chance?" Alicia nodded.

"I did; that was quite the fall," she crossed her arms.

"Did you... have anything to do with her survival?"

"Speedy, my son, I cannot affect the mortal realm, no matter how much I wish it."

"Right, that was a stupid question."

"I will answer any question you have, regardless of its frivolousness." Speedy scratched the back of his neck.

"That was harsh, for lack of a better term." She giggled.

"Something amuse you, Mother?" Alicia instantly straightened.

"Did you need something?"

"I... I was wondering what you think of Amy."

"She is a sweet girl, a little naive mind you, but she merits a good heart."

"Do you think she is truly in love with my little brother as she claims to be?"

"I do not truly believe so, but that is only an opinion. Why?"

"I just met her and I'm already having that warm, comforting feeling in my heart."

"Have you gazed into her eyes yet?" He licked his lips.

"No, I'm a little afraid that the result may be the opposite of that I would like."

"You cannot live in love with it as an ignorance, Speedy. You must know for sure. You can love her, but that doesn't mean that she has to love you back. I told you that, remember?"

"... I suppose you're right. I have little choice anyway."

"... Follow your heart. It won't lead you astray, and neither will your father nor I."

"Alright." A shooting star passed across the sky. Alicia's eyes watched it fly over her head.

"Make a wish, son." She smiled lovingly. Speedy shut his eyes. What followed was the feeling of his mother kissing his forehead, the wish granted. He opened his eyes; the stars were just stars. A tear rolled down his face.

"I love you, Mother." Speedy whispered to the night sky. He stood and made his way back to the hangar. He arrived back at around six in the morning; apparently, he had gotten lost. He stumbled in the door. Sonic stirred awake to the sound of him entering.

"Where'd you go?" Sonic groggily questioned him.

"For a walk; I needed to clear my head." It was a simple answer.

"That was a long walk." Speedy wouldn't dare say that he had gotten lost.

"I had a lot to digest."

"Alright." Sonic yawned, looking at the clock. "Well, thanks for waking me, bro. It's time for my early morning run anyways." He stood up. "Couch is all yours."

"Thank you!" Speedy sauntered over to it and collapsed, falling quickly asleep.

"See you around." Sonic stretched his muscles out then bolted out the door. The sun was peaking over the horizon.

**With Speedy around, things are starting to get a bit different for Sonic. Will he end up with Amy like he wishes? Find out in the next chapter!**


	21. A New Affection

At the hospital, Tails sat in a chair across from the operating room. He had his hands clasped together and pressed to his forehead, simply praying. A doctor walked out of the door after an amount of time which Tails did not keep track of. He quickly stood.

"Doctor! How... is she?"

"She will be fine, just had a few cracked ribs; we fixed her up, but you might want to refrain from making her laugh too hard for a while. It will hurt in the event that she does."

"Okay. Mind if I see her?"

"Go on in, she is very groggy, so don't expect much talk from her." Tails lightly laughed.

"Okay." He entered the door. Amy lied in the bed, her eyes barely open.

"Tails?" Amy said sleepily.

"Hey Ames, do you feel any better?" Amy yawned.

"A little but, not much."

"Shall I let you rest then?" Amy nodded and Tails returned one. He pulled up a chair next to Amy's bed. Amy already was asleep. Soon, he was also asleep. After what seemed like a bit, he woke up and looked up at the clock. It was two-thirty in the after noon! Tails had slept longer than he wanted to. He stood up as a nurse walked in. She said nothing, just checked Amy's IV and left. The door shut, then opened up again. Sonic entered the room, holding a bouquet in his hand. Amy immediately noticed it. She was getting ready to stand and run into Sonic, but Tails held her down.

"Oh! Sonic! For me?!" she asked adoringly.

"Look Amy, this is just an apology. Don't let this get to your head," Sonic put in. Tails walked out into the hallway.

"Well, if you have some other girl on your mind, she can't have you. You are mine, after all." Sonic glared at her then stood.

"I'm not some kind of possession Amy; you should get that into your head!" Sonic stomped over to the door, turning the handle. Tails was on the bench.

"Hey, Sonic," Tails said, smiling.

"Hey, Tails. Man, Amy is a pest! She labeled me as her property, I hate that." Tails laughed quietly.

"What?"

"You can find someone else for her to bother," Tails suggested.

"Like who?"

"I don't know, just someone else." Tails winked to Sonic.

"I'd rather not send my brother into purgatory," Sonic said as he scratched his chin.

"Yeah, I suppose so." In the room, Amy was silently pondering about what was so wrong about what she said. A bee revealed itself from the flowers. Amy stared cautiously at it, hoping it wouldn't fly toward her. She was breathing shallowly, just staring at it. Its wings buzzed and Amy panicked; she screamed and tossed the flowers at the wall. The bee crawled out of the bouquet and flew out the open window. Amy sighed in relief. Out in the hallway, Tails stared at the door to the room.

"What was that?" She wondered. Sonic began to snicker. "Sonic... you didn't."

"It was just a joke."

"That's not nice."

"Your point?" Sonic asked. Tails sighed.

"Never mind." He stood and walked away; Sonic followed him.

"You can't take a joke?"

"Sonic, Amy is in recovery; there is a time and place for everything. You need to pick those appropriate times. That was a very mean thing to do." Tails continued walking.

"I'm guessing that this is what my mother was like." Sonic grumbled, still following him.

"Probably; speaking of which, where's Speedy?" Tails began to look around.

"He's back at the hangar; he took an extremely long walk last night. He said he needed to clear his head."

"Huh, what time did he get back?"

"Around six; personally, I think he got lost." Sonic opened the door for Tails. He stepped outside taking in a breath of fresh air.

"Hey, Sonic, you should hang out with your bro often; maybe he can teach you a thing or two about being civilized."

"I don't do whipped." Sonic returned. They sighed simultaneously.

"Shall we go back to my place?" Tails asked.

"Sure, I have nothing better to do." The two climbed into the plane that was parked on the street, which was causing a small traffic jam. The two took off. They shortly arrived at the hangar. Tails observed Speedy standing outside by the forest, using a tree as a punching bag. Tails landed and quickly went to him. Sonic walked out of the hangar and took a seat on the couch inside. He flipped on the TV and slouched in boredom.

"What are you doing?" Tails asked from behind the hedgehog. Speedy delivered a spinning strike to the tree with his hands, knocking it over. He looked around to Tails. "Oh nothing, just killing time." He casually stated. Tails was staring at him, slack jawed and wide eyed.

"G... GEEZ!" Tails shouted.

"What? That?" He pointed behind him at the tree.

"HA! Remind me and Sonic to stay on your good side." Tails' tone held a little excitement.

"Should I even have to?" he laughed.

"Touché." He crossed his arms, giving him a deep thought look. Speedy blushed.

"...How is Amy?"

"She's doing fine...Why are you blushing?" Tails questioned. Speedy turned from Tails, remaining silent. "Oh. I see." Tails scratched his ears. "Do you... want me to take you to her?" He turned back to him, smiling softly. Tails nodded. "Come on then." Tails flew Speedy to Station Square. They walked to Amy's room door.

"Tails, thanks for this; I really didn't feel like waiting." He stared at the door as he spoke.

"If you love her then tell her; maybe you'll get her off Sonic's back. I'll wait here and give you two your moment." Speedy entered closing the door behind him. All was quiet. Sonic took a seat in the chair that lay outside the door. Speedy emerged shortly after entering.

"What's wrong?" Tails asked. Speedy sighed.

"She's not in here any longer, apparently."

"Where did she go then?" Speedy scratched his spike.

"Why are you asking me?"

"General question."

"Right, sorry." Tails led Speedy out of the hospital after the senseless visit. Speedy's head hung low, but his mind was in the clouds. Tails walked over and hopped into his plane. Speedy, however, strayed and continued along the sidewalk. Tails didn't bother to stop him; he knew he was feeling down about not being able to see the one he, somehow, fell in love with. The yellow fox started the plane and flew off in the direction of the Mystic Ruins. Speedy kept walking and walking until there was no longer a sidewalk to follow. He sighed.

"No road is long enough to take me very far." The depressed hedgehog turned around and headed back into the city. It wasn't until a few blocks later until he heard a voice that was sweet and caressing to his ears.

"Speedy? What are you doing here?" Amy looked at him, slightly surprised. His spirits were instantly lifted; he smiled and looked up to her. Amy, who was watering her rose bushes, returned a smile.

"Just came to the hospital to check up on you."

"That is very sweet of you." She carefully stepped over to him, giving him a kiss on the cheek. His ears reached straight up, as if they could get taller.

"Why, thank you, Amy." He blushed, his ears beginning to hurt from the tension. Amy cocked a brow.

"What's with your ears?" Speedy pulled his ears down.

"They just get that way when I'm glad." He smiled crookedly.

-In Heaven-

"Our son is such a terrible liar." Joshua said to Alicia. Alicia lowered her eyelids.

"Well, he's nervous. You we're that way too, remember?"

"Yeah, I remember." He rolled his eyes.

-Earth-

"What are you glad about?" Amy was quizzing him.

"I'm glad you are well." It wasn't a complete lie. Amy wanted to tease him a bit.

"Are you hitting on me?"

"N-No! I-I-I..." Speedy stammered.

-Heaven-

Joshua was in hard laughter, observing his son stumble.

"He's loosing it!" Alicia glared at him and grabbed his ear, tugging sharply upward, drawing a few tears to his eyes.

"If I can remember correctly you were worse. YOU fainted when you spoke to me like Speedy is now to Amy. He's holding up more than you did."

-Earth-

Amy was giving him a twisted look.

"You okay?" Speedy turned a dark red shade. Amy set a hand on his head. He was burning up. "Geez! Come in my house; you're hot." And with that word, hot, Speedy fainted due to the obvious misinterpretation of Amy's sentence. He awoke a few hours later with a cold towel on his head.

"Ohh, my head..." Speedy groaned. He sat up, and the towel slid off. He observed his surroundings. Everything was pink. The hedgehog closed his eyes; the bright color blinded him to some extent.

"Glad to see you up." Amy's voice came to his ears.

"Where am I? And why is everything coated in pink?" His eyes were now pressed tight.

"You're in my house and what's wrong with pink?" Amy had a bit of a temper to his question about her home décor.

"I have nothing against pink, but too much and it becomes too bright." Amy shrugged.

"Can't help you there."

"I know; just a bit light sensitive at the moment." Speedy rubbed his eyes.

"Well, I made you some soup in case you were hungry." She set the bowl down in front of him on the coffee table.

"Thank you, Amy; I appreciate it." He smiled in her direction or where he hoped she was standing.

"Just helping you as you helped me." She blushed. Speedy slowly and blindly waved his hand over the coffee table, searching for the heat radiating from the soup. Finding it he lowered his hand down, and then moved his hand to the right, gliding over the rim of the bowl, taking up the spoon. "Wow, you're good at doing things blindly." Amy said.

"Yeah, it's another one of my mother's punishments. Although, looking back on it now, it seems more of a training than a punishment." He dipped the spoon, lifted it back up, and sipped at it. Amy took a seat next to him.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it has made me far more gentle with my surroundings. I can graze over things easily without disturbing them, unless I do so wish. To be completely truthful, I don't think that my mother actually was punishing me at all, more like, teaching me how to use my other senses keenly." Amy's ears drooped.

"I'm sorry that your parents had to die like they did. You and Sonic, you all could have all lived so happily without the worry of this complex life style." He set his spoon down in to the soup and looked to Amy, cracking his eyes open to allow at least some adjustment.

"Amy, what is done cannot be undone, no matter how much we may wish it to be. Our parents are dead and they cannot come back, but I will not let sorrow rule over me; I have too much to look forward to."

"Such as?"

"Such as my brother, my new friends, my life... and maybe even a family to share with a beautiful wife." Speedy's eyes fully opened, and their gazes locked. Almost instinctively, both Amy's and Speedy's faces glided to the other's. Their lips locked, enjoying the embrace of the other's warm and tender touch. Amy did not fight even though the love she had of Sonic still held her heart. The two slowly parted. Speed put a hand to his head. "...I'm sorry, Amy."

"Why?" She licked her lips.

"Well, you love Sonic, do you not? That was a slight mistake on my part. I don't want to force you into something like this." He went back to the soup. Amy placed a finger to her lips.

"Do you… love me?" He sighed, yet it had a softness to it. He didn't want to lie.

"I'm just going to say that I can't deny that I enjoyed the experience."

"I'll take that as a compliment." Amy smiled. Speedy quickly finished the soup.

"...Thank you again, Amy. It has been far too long a time since I've had a great tasting soup."

"You're welcome." Speedy rose from the couch and stretched out his limbs.

"I suppose I should get going." He frowned. Amy fidgeted on the couch as the hedgehog went to the door.

"Wait!" Amy hurried to him. "You need more rest; you can stay if you like." It sounded as if she was almost begging him.

"I don't know about that. I don't want to worry my little bro."

"NO! I want you to stay." Amy shouted, grabbing the collar of his coat. Speedy reeled back in amazement from Amy's outburst. Amy's heart pounded like a drum being abused by a mallet. She quickly released him, astonished with herself, and then ran upstairs to her room, shutting the door. Amy's face glowed as bright as Speedy's before he passed out. Amy leaned on a wall. "What am I doing?!" Amy slid down the wall and started to cry, she now had a love for two different people; those whose worlds are differ from the other's immensely. Sonic was the wild, party boy, stealing her heart just as he stole time with his speed. Speedy possessed wisdom and a warm heart to comfort her with. Which would she choose?

Downstairs, Speedy sat back down on the couch. He gritted his teeth, wondering if he should interfere. To take fate into his hands for once, instead of leave the choice to another. He sighed, grabbing the empty soup bowl and spoon, taking them to the kitchen. Filling the sink with hot water, he washed the bowl, then the spoon, then a few plates, more utensils, other bowls, and so forth... Before he knew it, night had risen to this side of the world. Next, Speedy dried the dishes and placed them back to where they should be. Finishing up by cleaning the counter top, the stove was one of those on the list also. After all was clean and spotless, he left Amy a note on a piece of paper, sticking it on the refrigerator with a magnet. He left silently. The light shined on Amy's eyes early next dawn. She squinted to the light.

"Ow." She whispered. Amy had fallen asleep on the floor. Her tears from the night before had crusted to her face. She scratched them off as she stood and walked downstairs. Entering the kitchen, she gasped and stared with her jaw wide open to see the entire place spotless. She stepped gradually through the kitchen, where she perceived a note on the refrigerator. She removed it and read.

_Amy,_

_I return your hospitality for the soup by cleaning the dishes I had used. As for the rest well... I thank you for showing me love again. It has been far too long since I have felt this kind of warmth in my heart. I will not interfere with you and your love of Sonic; although, I think it's only fair to say that I love you._

_Speedy_

Amy's tears dropped onto the paper. She was filled with joy, sorrow, and hate. Joy for what Speedy had done for her, sorrow for her foolishness, and finally hate for Sonic. Sure, Sonic had saved her life, but he had never done a thing for her, for her heart. Speedy gave that to her all in one night. Amy pressed the note to her chest. Her jaw clenched tightly as her tears flowed.

"...Speedy..."

There was a loud screech as a train pulled into Station Square. Speedy spent the night on a bench inside the station, for the trains had stopped running after nine o' clock last night. His eyelids lifted open, yawning.

"Morning already?" He sat up. His coat, which he had used for a blanket, slid off onto the floor. "What a night; it has been too long since I did that kind of cleaning," he told himself, yawning once more. A person approached him from behind.

"Hey there, sleepy head." It was Tails.

"Hey, Tails, what are you doing here?" He was still ongoing with yawns.

"I should ask you that question." Tails yawned in response to his yawning. It was like an attack. "Stop yawning!" Tails smiled lightly, forcing himself not to continue with what Speedy had started. Speedy stretched tall and Tails couldn't help but follow his lead. Thinking quick on his feet, he bought a fist down on his head. "Stop doing that!" His smile became a chuckle.

"...Oww." Speedy rubbed his head. Tails sat down next to him.

"...So, what did you do yesterday for all of those hours?" Tails looked at him foxily. He stopped rubbing his head and shrugged.

"Just took a long walk around the city, nothing special."

"Oh really? Well, Amy called me up an hour ago, saying you visited her. But, what has me wondering is why she was crying. Any idea?" He gave him a serious expression. Speedy traced a finger across his lips, then sighed.

"Amy and I had an... encounter, if you will." Tails rolled his eyes.

"Don't use allusions, please."

"Amy and I had kissed; I was in the midst of leaving once I thanked her for the soup she had made me after I passed out, not going into details. She stopped me abruptly, and then she ran into her room. That was the last I saw of her. Oh, and I cleaned her kitchen, not sure that's relevant, though."

"Why would she be crying, though?"

"She might be torn with Sonic."

"What do you mean by that?"

"When we kissed, I could sense that a part of her still held a love for Sonic." He put his fingers to his lips, his eyes becoming glossy.

"What's wrong?" Tails asked, concerned.

"I've never felt so comfortable with another's lips to mine."

"You love her?" There was a long pause.

"How could I not?" he whispered.

"Then you should go back to her then."

"And Sonic?"

"Leave him to me, not like he would want to go near Amy's anyway. He has always seen her as a pest, which burns me up. If you were here longer you would know what I'm talking about."

"Care to elaborate?"

"Sonic has been Amy's obsession for many years. When Amy is around him she is a crazy nut case, no offense to her. Yet, when she is around others while Sonic is not around, Amy is a completely different person. She becomes sweet, innocent, a more tolerable girl to be around." Tails punched his palm with his other hand. "Sonic has done nothing but, push her away. I've seen her cry too many times when Sonic has rejected her... Amy deserves better." Tails smiled to Speedy. Speedy nodded, understanding what Tails was inferring. He tossed his coat into the air and slid his arms into the sleeves as it floated down.

"What about you Tails? What are you going to do?"

"Don't know; maybe I'll take a nap right here, the seat is nice and warm." He grinned.

"...Thank you, Tails." He placed a hand on his heart to show his sincerity.

"Go get her; you need her as much as she needs you." He gave a thumb's up then bolted through the revolving doors. The door swung around on his foot. Speedy fell backwards, quickly grasping his foot.

"Well, that was highly anticlimactic." Tails jogged over to him. Moments later, the ambulance showed up, taking Speedy to the hospital. "Suppose I should call Amy and tell her to meet me at the hospital." So, he did. Tails flew towards the hospital, thankful it wasn't him. In the distance, Tails, high above the city streets, saw a little pink dot quickly getting bigger. The yellow fox lowered himself to the ground, not touching, but close enough. He positioned himself in Amy's path. Tails grabbed Amy under her arms in her sprint, lifting her off the ground.

"Amy, slow down. What's the rush?"

"Speedy's hurt. How can you not be worried?" Amy struggled to Tails' grip.

"He just hurt his foot; I'm certain that he will not die." Tails set Amy back down. "Amy, you know he loves you, but you can't go about this as you had to Sonic. You can't become clingy with him or change his steady paced life style. You are going to have to slow up, if you want a relationship. That is your plan... isn't it?" Amy's muscles fell slack and she lowered her head. Tears lined the rims of her eyes.

"...I don't know what I'm doing." Amy cried.

"What do you mean?"

"I do love Speedy, I can't deny that, but at the same time I... I-"

"-still love Sonic. Am I right?" Tails finished for her.

"I'm starting to hate Sonic for the ways he has wronged me." She growled when she said hate.

"Then what's the problem?" Tails asked.

"... I can't let him go. I've loved him for so long, that finding the reason to let him truly go is too much for me to bear," Amy sobbed. Tails shook his head.

"Can you honestly say that you loved him?" Amy pressed her hands on her head.

"That's what I'm trying to figure out."

"Do you remember what Speedy said the other day, the day of our reunion party? Cream told me it. If not, then allow me to refresh your memory, with his words from my mouth...When two people gaze into one another's eyes they can feel their hearts warmed. It feels as a gentle breeze to the face. Their minds are soothed like the ebbing sound of the sea. Their bodies wrapped in its feel. The dance of the soul's flame, its serenade... Have you ever looked into Sonic's eyes, Amy? Feeling what Speedy had said?"

"...No..." She whimpered.

"Then why is it so hard?"

"I can't answer that. I'm so lost." Amy hugged herself for comfort.

"Then, you should find yourself. Find yourself with another." Tails smiled. Amy shifted her sights to the fox. "...Amy, you know you truly love Speedy. You may love Sonic's cool boy attitude but, you don't love him, not as a person. Think about Speedy, think of what he has offered you in the time he has been here. True, it may have been only a few days, yet I can see that Speedy has offered you so much more than Sonic ever has. Compassion, understanding, recognition... love. Has Sonic given any of this to you, even once since you've known him? I think not. Your eyes have blinded your heart." Tears flowed from Tails' eyes. Amy hugged Tails, crying with him.

"Tails, thank you." Tails took Amy's arms off of him, holding them.

"Let's go see my Speedy, shall we?" Tails suggested. Amy nodded and the two of them walked patiently towards the hospital. "...Hey Amy, was Speedy a good kisser?" Tails slyly looked at Amy. Her response was nothing more than a deep blush and a refusal to make eye contact. "I see. No further questions to be asked then."

"...You know, the one thing that surprised me was that he made my kitchen the definition of clean."

"That clean, huh?"

"And he did all that just for receiving a simple kiss."

"To him it may not have been so simple. You have to remember, he still knows what his parents look like, what their love felt like. For 13 years he was deprived of that. That kiss could have been the equivalent of the world for him." Amy started to think hard on what Tails had said a minute ago. She stopped in her tracks.

"For all these years, Sonic has been the one I thought was for me. Then a kind and gentle hedgehog appears from out of the blue. By happenstance it is Sonic's long lost link to his family and the one that can complete my heart. I can't help but feel relieved, however. If I would have stayed with Sonic in my heart, I'm not sure what would have happened."

"I shudder to think about that, Amy. You no longer have to worry about that though; Speedy has opened your eyes, hasn't he? Even if, and this is a big if, he isn't the one for you, you won't have to face anymore heartbreak from Sonic." Amy perked up.

"You are absolutely right."

"Trust me. Though, no matter what happens, please don't break Speedy's heart. He has been through enough already. His parents' deaths, him and Sonic being separated, living alone for 13 years. Neither I nor Sonic could stand to see his face in sorrow again."

"Don't worry, Tails, I have just found true love. I'm not about to let that slip from my grasp."

"Good, because, we're here." Tails points out the hospital across the street. Amy giggled.

"Wow, time sure does fly when you're having fun." There was a touch of sarcasm. The two strolled to the other side of the street, walking into the building. They stopped at the reception desk to ask for the room Speedy was assigned to.

"Speedy the Hedgehog... third floor, room 318." The receptionist directed them. Both thanked her then took the elevator to the third floor, Amy's heart was racing; she could barely restrain her excitement. The doors opened and Tails look over Amy.

"If you want to run to him then do it, no ones going to stop you." He lightly laughed. Amy ran from the elevator, knocking over a few nurses, doctors and patients on her way to the room. Speedy was sitting up in bed facing away from the door, his ears dropped to the sides and moving his foot back and forth with his hands. It was wrapped in medical bandages. He sighed. Sonic was there

"I'm so hyped up on morphine I don't have any feeling in my foot." Amy sneaked up on him.

"How are you doing?" They jumped slightly, turning around to her. Speedy smiled ear to ear. Sonic took a seat in the corner, and Amy didn't notice him.

"Amy, so glad you are here!"

"Tails told me what you think of me." She blushed madly. He blushed, but not uncomfortably.

"Did he?" Amy took a set next to him.

"He did. Something I want to know, however, is why you chose me."

"When I first looked at you, I felt something spark in my heart. At first I ignored it, thinking it was but a silly feeling. Then you showed me kindness for the reunion party. That flame, small, but burning brightly, warmed my chest. It has been so long since I have felt love. My heart was crying out for something... someone. It was at the point I gazed into your eyes though, my feelings were assured that I loved you." Speedy wiped a tear from his eye. Amy hugged him.

"I have held love for Sonic for many years. Every time I would ask him for his love in return for mine, he would push me away. I could find myself hating him, yet my heart would not allow it. I was blind; that's what Tails told me. It was when I met you that I knew what it was like to be loved back." She began to cry. Speedy wrapped his arms around Amy, holding her close. He too began to weep; his heart was overflowing with emotions long since buried. He treasured every second of it. Together, caressing one another, they felt complete. Every piece of their hearts fit into alignment. Tails, who was in the doorway, was observing the entire moment. Tails left them to be in peace, taking the stairs down to the ground floor. He was overjoyed in what he had helped them with. The yellow fox left the hospital, searching to tell Sonic.

He couldn't believe that he and Amy forgot to call Sonic. He felt rather stupid. He rounded corners, heading to the beach where Sonic should've been at that hour. A voice interrupted him

"Hey, Tails." Tails halted. He recognized the voice. He saw the speaker.

"Hey, Cream." Tails said with a huge smile on his face, but then it changed into a light frown.

"What's got you excited and yet grumbling?" Tails hesitated.

"Well, I'm grumbling 'cuz neither Amy nor I called Sonic to tell him that his bro hurt his foot and his in the hospital," Tails explained. "I'm happy because Speedy has found a match for himself." Cream smiled wide.

"How wonderful! So, who's the lucky lady?"

"You know her as Amy Rose." Tails rolled his eyes.

"Amy?!" Cream's smile rapidly faded and her eyes shot wide.

"Yeah, Amy." He laughed uneasily, scratching at his neck. Cream chuckled.

"I get it; this is some kind of joke. Had me going there for a sec." Cream eyed Tails' serious expression. "You're... joking, right?" she said in disbelief.

"Do you see a smile?"

"Wow." Cream shielded her eyes with her hand and leaned against the wall, trying to form the picture. "How did this happen? I thought Amy would never make a transition from Sonic. No less his brother for that matter. I thought that would be impossible for Amy." Cream was still trying to fit the concept into her head.

"I know it's hard to believe but, that's the truth. Speedy told me that he and Amy had shared a kiss with one another. Prior to that he told me he passed out, for reasons he will not disclose with me. Amy brought him into her house and she made him some soup. After finishing, he was preparing to leave when Amy stopped him. Then she ran up to her room; that was the lat he saw of her for that night. For some reason he felt like cleaning her kitchen 'till it was, 'the definition of clean', as Amy put it. Then he just left and spent the rest of the night at the train station." Cream's bewilderment grew.

"That's weird. Why would he do something like that?"

"He loves Amy. Unlike Sonic who wants nothing to do with her. Speedy has given to Amy what she has always wanted: a heart to share with one like hers. I think he cleaned her kitchen because, well, he wants to help her."

"Help her with what?"

"I don't know. I think he just helps because he wants to. I can't explain. I'm at a loss for words right now."

"I think you are looking for the word compassion."

Tails scratched her ears. "That's the word."

"I can't really get the image; any chance we can go see them?" Cream, stood off the wall and uncovered her eyes. She walked over and took Tails' hand, blushing. The fox blushed a deeper shade of red, feeling his chest flush of warmth.

"A-Alright. I-I wasn't in a hurry to g-get him," Tails stammered. Cream smiled and pulled hard on Tails' wrist, leading him back to the hospital, nearly dragging her. Soon after a block or so Tails finally stumbled. This slowed Cream's pace but, not enough to stop her. Tails' somehow managed to get back to his feet as Cream continued to yank on his arm. His right arm's joints were under a lot of strain. The biggest concern was Cream might pop a joint out of its socket. Cream halted; at last they had arrived at the hospital. Tails eyes were tearing, it hurt so much. Cream released his wrist and walked through the doors. Tails pressed his arm to his chest, holding it there tightly. Tails yelled at her to slow down, but Cream was too focused. Tails entered after the pain had subsided enough for him to loosen the tension on it. Cream was leaning up against the reception desk, waiting for Tails to catch up.

"Come on Tails! You are so slow," she teased. Tails smacked his forehead with the hand on his good arm. He was able to keep a pace with Sonic, but Cream was another story. Well, not when she wasn't on an adrenaline rush. Tails drug his feet over to the young rabbit. Cream offered her hand. Now both of Tails' arms were pressed to his chest. He shook his head in fear of being drug all over the place. The rabbit shrugged and began her trot over to the elevator. Tails followed a good distance behind. The doors opened for Cream. She held them open, once again waiting for Tails. The fox entered the elevator, protecting his wrists. The rabbit rolled her eyes. "It wasn't that bad."

"Easy for you to say. I tripped and you almost drug me the rest of the way here." Tails frowned.

"Oh, I thought that was you slowing down." Cream played innocent. They went to silence for a moment before the doors reopened. The two stepped out, quietly walking to the room. Speedy and Amy still sat on the bed. One of the orange hedgehog's arms was draped over her shoulders. Amy's head was resting on his right shoulder with a warm smile about her face. Cream's and Tails' eyes were enwrapped on the two. Amy gently rubbed her head on his shoulder to feel his soft, warm fur. Cream blinked a few times. She was completely speechless. Cream finally decided to speak after a while. "Hey you two." She approached them. Speedy's and Amy's ears twitched. They turned to her.

"This is a nice surprise." Amy said.

"I guess what Tails had told me was no lie after all."

"No, I have at last found my salvation from Sonic." Amy stared into Speedy's eyes, allowing that wonderful feeling to bless her body. The two slowly locked lips, sharing a tender kiss which felt as if it lasted ages. They parted and Amy sighed with pleasure. "I will never get tired of that." Her eyes fluttered lightly. Speedy hugged her close.

"Neither will I." He kissed her forehead.

The adolescent fox crept away to continue his walk to get Sonic. He used the elevator, and then walked out the front door

The temperature was hot but, the real heat hits in the late afternoon. Tails took his time, doubting Sonic was there. He put his head down to think. He shut her eyes, walking blindly through the empty streets, relying on his sense of hearing for guidance. Tails heard someone following him close. He rounded a few more corners, hoping that the person wouldn't follow her. He stopped when his heel was stepped on. Tails reared around to shoot an angry look at his follower. He could not though, for his follower was none other than the famous Sonic the Hedgehog.

"'Sup, Tails." Sonic said cheerfully.

"Sorry, Sonic," Tails said, scratching his neck.

"Sorry for what?"

"Well, your brother hurt his foot in the train station, and he was sent to the hospital. Amy and I forgot to call."

"Why did Amy go?"

"Funny story, true story actually. It would appear Amy will no longer be chasing after you-"

"SERIOUSLY!?" Sonic interrupted him. He was overjoyed on so many levels.

"Yeah, she found someone else and-"

He was interrupted again. "Boy, do I feel sorry for that guy."

"Sonic?"

"Yeah?"

"May I finish?"

"Oh, sorry. Go ahead." Sonic wore a smile that looked as if it was elastic, kind of creepy.

"Anyway! It turns out that the one she has fallen in love with is your brother, Speedy. She is now in currently in the process of strengthening the bond. That's why she went."

"Well, there is no way he could love her back." Tails knew Sonic would say that.

"To tell you the truth, he does love her back. Perhaps his love is even more potent than Amy's," Tails explained. Sonic chuckled.

"I find that hard to believe."

"To sum it up, Speedy told me that yesterday they had kissed. Amy felt embarrassed, so she shut herself in her room. Then Speedy cleaned her kitchen out of compassion."

"I can't fit this in my head. Amy is crazy. Please tell me how anyone can love her."

"She was only crazy because you never done anything for her. Personally at least."

"What are you talking about? I've saved her life plenty of times."

"That's value of life, not love. She wanted you to do something for her. Such as, I don't know. Love her for the way she loved you. You've never showed her that, so she has left you for someone else."

"You're saying I should have fallen in love with Amy?"

"No, that's all in the past. She was a nuisance. Wasn't she?" Sonic's head was going in circles, thinking that Tails was contradicting himself. Then, his thoughts straightened.

"Yeah, she was… well, I'd better go see Speedy and Amy! See ya, bud!" Sonic yelled as he ran off.

"See ya!" Tails called back.

**So, Amy and Speedy are together. What will happen in the next chapter? Find out!**


	22. The Strength of a Bond

"Man, do I hate hospitals." Speedy groaned as he stepped outside with Amy and Cream.

"Why do you hate them?" Cream asked. Speedy opened his mouth to respond to Cream's question, but Amy spoke first.

"No room to breathe, probably." She hit the nail on the head. Speedy smiled warmly to her and Amy returned it. A gust of wind spontaneously blew. Amy held the front of her skirt down. The orange hedgehog's eyes wandered to where they shouldn't have. He blushed as bright as a taillight on a car. The gust passed and Amy looked at Speedy. He quickly shifted his gaze from her behind. "You are a little pervert, aren't you?" Amy said slyly.

"Couldn't be helped right there." Speedy didn't dare press her buttons by saying something like, 'Be glad it was you and not another girl.' That was how one fell into traps. More would be said than absolutely necessary. Amy rolled her eyes from him.

"Whatever."

"I'm sorry, Amy. Can you forgive me?" His ears dropped. Amy wanted to tease him, but she refrained from such.

"We are a couple, so I can let that slide." Amy kissed his cheek, blushing ever so slightly.

"Hearing you say that we're a couple lifts the burdens from my heart," he spoke to her cordially. Amy giggled.

"It's a gift." Someone bumped into Speedy from behind. He staggered, yet kept to his feet. Amy and Cream saw who it was.

"Hey, Sonic." Amy said nonchalantly.

"Amy!?" Sonic flinched. Amy's face turned a little red.

"Sonic, get a grip. I love Speedy now." She grabbed her new love's arm. It was almost a painful grasp.

"Fine," Sonic snapped. Now, Amy was mad. She released Speedy's arm and started poking Sonic in his chest.

"You see!? It's that attitude of yours. You would take one glance at me and then take off like I had the plague! Well, I'm sick of it!! That was your chance and you blew it! So you can just keep on running; I DON'T want to see you again, you jerk!" With her last word, Amy stomped her foot.

Anger was visible on Sonic's face. His arm muscles tensed up and his fingers were twitching. His breathing became shallow. He wanted to strike her. Speedy's back was still to the two hedgehogs and his head was barely turned. He could sense the negativity radiating from Sonic, however.

"Sonic, if you harm Amy, I will harm you back… and don't think I will take it easy on you." His claws slowly crept out from under his fingertips. His head was now looking over his right shoulder at the hedgehog. He gave Sonic a penetrating glare with only one eye, yet it had the intensity of both. Sonic realized what had happened.

"Whoa, whoa!" Sonic pushed his hands out like a stop gesture. "Hang on! Back up! Amy, I wasn't yelling your name out of anger. You only caught me off guard, that's all." They saw his answer was truthful. Speedy retracted his claws, calmed his anger, and sighed with relief.

"Glad that turned out peacefully. I don't like shedding innocent blood." Cream beamed a glance at him before shifting her attention back to Sonic. She then looked back at Speedy as the four started walking.

"I don't mean to dampen your parade, but Sonic can run circles around you. No offense." Sonic was listening.

"I know that he is fast. At close range though, I might have the advantage." Amy raised a brow to him.

"You seem pretty sure of yourself."

"I know how to fight. I had to refine all of my father's teachings when I was alone."

"What do you mean by 'refine'?" Sonic asked.

"For starters, I didn't always have these claws. These are a result of living a feral lifestyle for 14 years. My father lived in the wild like that as well. Except his was more of a test than a fight for survival. My grandfather saw to his training."

"Wait, could you not have sought him out instead of taking you and Sonic to that village?" Amy asked. Speedy shook his head, not wanting to get into that. They sat on a bench.

"I really do not feel like delving into that matter at the moment," Speedy said. Amy nodded understandingly.

"Well, are we going to see Tails?" Amy asked. "Or should we go to Wardington to catch back up with the Brawlers and the Smashers?"

"How about both?" Sonic asked. Amy nodded. Speedy moved over to Amy and offered a hand to help her from the bench. She accepted and Speedy took her up. Amy fell into his arms. They walked to the Mystic Ruins, Sonic staying a few feet behind to let the others talk.

"I can't believe I just told Sonic off," Amy said.

"Why? You still have feelings for him?" He shed a sad tone of voice.

"No, it's just that I told Sonic that I never wanted to see him again. I thought I would never say those words. To his face, none the less. That was kind of incredible actually." Amy smiled.

"Feels good to take control doesn't it?" Speedy smiled back. Amy rubbed her face on his thick, orange fur. The hedgehog pet her head then scooped her off the ground into his arms. Cream's face was a light red. She was angry that Speedy and Amy had found each other so quickly, yet she and Tails weren't that close.

"Can we go, please? Before I gag," Cream rudely pronounced. Speedy shrugged to Cream. The hedgehog was not intimidated, but he didn't want to frustrate her any further.

"After you then, miss rabbit." Cream almost pushed them aside as she walked past them. Amy wanted to scold her, but Speedy hushed her with his finger. He followed Cream's lead with Amy in his arms.

"Where do you think Tails would be?" Amy asked.

"Maybe the hangar," Cream said.

"Well, I think we should check his apartment first. Seeing how we're already here." Speedy suggested.

"I second that," Amy said. Cream rolled her eyes.

"Whatever," she said grumpily. Amy really wanted to scold Cream for her behavior, and yet her new boyfriend still hushed her.

"Amy, don't worry about it. Cream is taking this pretty hard, I think, so we have to be as patient as we can be with her," he whispered in Amy's ear.

"Alright, I'll try. Not making any promises though."

"Good enough." Speedy nuzzled their noses. Amy teared up. "Something wrong?" He concernedly asked.

"No, I'm just so happy." She wiped her eyes, yet they remained glossy. Amy rested her head to Speedy's chest. He then told her very sweetly,

"Cry, my love. Just cry." His words were so gentle to her. She couldn't resist. Amy's tears flowed form her eyes like a cascade of joy. Speedy halted to caress Amy. He rocked her lightly back and forth. Never could Amy have found such deep devotion with Sonic. His heart was a treasure and one that she would never forfeit. Amy's next words were muffled and chocked by her tears, but she said to him so lovingly,

"Speedy, thank you so much." Speedy, bound up with warmth, allowed himself to cry with Amy. Every tear that fell off their cheeks was tender and warm, worthy of remembrance. Their hearts beat as one. Both had never experienced such bliss. Another teaching of Speedy's mother was:

"Perfect is only as perfect as one makes it." If this wasn't perfect, then nothing was. Neither could find the strength to stop their tears. To do so would be border-line sinful. Love should not be held back, but rather expressed to the greatest measures. The gaps and pains of their past were now but scars to them. Their pain had ceased when the two bonded, for that love was pure.

Cream had stopped a block ahead of them, now realizing that she was no longer being followed. She turned around to order them to hurry up. The words could not cross her lips, though. Seeing the two in such a tight bond, her anger and frustration dissipated. Cream walked back up to them calmly, observing how close they had just become. Sonic did the same.

"Wow…" Sonic was really enthralled by their bond.

'How can two people fall into this quality of romance so quickly?' Cream asked herself. There was an old saying for that occasion:

"Just as opposites attract on a magnet, so do people." Alicia, however, added to the saying with: "… yet those who have the same heartbeat stay together." Cream waited patiently for the couple to finish. To her, this affection was almost palpable. The two finished with their tears, sensing that Cream was waiting. Amy wiped the tears from her face.

"Sorry, Cream."

"I don't mind. I guess you really do love Speedy. Sorry that I doubted you."

"It's quite alright. I know it's hard to believe. Sonic was my obsession for many years after all."

"Shall we continue to Tails' apartment?" Speedy asked. Cream nodded and led them back on their way. Soon, they got there. The fox turned to the group. Amy was asleep in Speedy's arms.

"Hey, guys!"

"Hello, Tails," Speedy replied. He set Amy on the floor, and then walked over to him to chat.

"I told Sonic the news, and boy, did he not believe me. It was funny. He thought no one could love Amy back," Tails chuckled. Speedy thought deeply for a moment.

"That's why Sonic was so mixed up when he bumped into me."

"He was mixed up?" Tails asked.

"Yeah, quite a bit actually. Amy blew up in his face. Thought I would have to fight him if he struck Amy. Then, he explained Amy caught him off guard, which is what I mean by 'mixed up'. I digress, though. You were saying?"

"What did Amy say?" Tails asked curiously.

"She said that she was tired of being pushed away all the time. That she was with me now and Sonic blew his chance." Tails rolled his eyes.

"Typical Amy," Tails stated. Speedy laughed.

"I honestly wouldn't know." Tails scratched his ears.

"Oh, right…" Speedy walked into the hallway where Amy was. He picked her up and moved her to the living room.

"Shoot, Mother is going to send me flying into purgatory…" He muttered. Cream went to Tails' bedroom and shut door to speak with him in private. In the living room, Speedy took up the picture that stood on the table next to the couch. "Mom, please forgive me." He could barely make eye contact with his mother's eyes in the photo. He set the picture frame back down on the table. Still feeling uneasy, he tipped it over face down. Sonic watched him curiously, but turned and put Amy on one end of the other couch. He sat on the other end and fell asleep instantly. Speedy pet Amy's face, causing her to stir slightly. The hedgehog stopped. He spotted the remote lying on the coffee table before him. 'Never actually watched TV before,' he said to himself.

Speedy grabbed the remote and watched whatever was on, soon becoming enticed by the vibrant colors and images set in front of his vision. Cream and Tails emerged from the room after about a half hour. Amy and Sonic woke up at that time. The four spotted Speedy on the edge of his seat and his arms resting on his thighs. Amy gave him a funny expression.

"Speedy?"

"Hm?" was his response. Amy laughed.

"You act as if you've never watched TV before." He clicked the TV off.

"Sorry."

"You've watched television?" Sonic looked at him with amazement.

"Our mother prohibited it. Our family was pretty old fashioned."

"That is so sad," Tails chuckled. Sonic turned to him.

"Tails, do you think you could fire up the Tornado and get us to Wardington?" Sonic asked. Tails nodded, and the five walked out. Cream waved goodbye to them as she went home. The other four got to the hangar and hopped in the plane. They took off to Wardington. Once near Dan's house, they saw the others with Michael. Kato flew Jared back to Moscow earlier in the morning. They greeted each other, and they went into Dan's living room. Sonic told them everything that happened since they left. Needless to say, they were impressed. Dan told them that Klaus and Daisy also got together. They didn't disclose any information as to how. Amy looked at Sonic.

"So, Sonic, are you coming back to Station Square? You know, since you have your moves back and everything," she said. Sonic was silent for a moment, and then sighed.

"… No…" Sonic said, hoping not to upset them. The two lovers looked at him.

"May we ask why?" Speedy answered. Deciding it was for the best, Sonic began to explain the whole situation, regarding Naga, the cores, the Bakugan, Vestroia's expansion connecting many other worlds, and everything in between. Speedy and Amy were wide-eyed through the whole tale.

"… So, we decided to help the Brawlers fix this calamity, and in the meantime, collect our other abilities. I'm not going back to Station Square until then. So, you three can choose. You can live in Station Square and just relax, but I may not be able to see you often. Or, you can come with us, but it will be dangerous." With that, Sonic went into a relaxed position. The three looked at each other.

"I want to go!" Tails said excitedly. Sonic smirked. The blue blur knew Tails would.

"Well, I only know martial arts, so I won't be able to fight that any super-powered beings. I think I'll stay at Station Square, but we can still visit each other," Speedy decided. Sonic smiled, and walked over to his side. He wrapped him in an embrace. Amy decided to stay as well. It was then that Necrophilen opened up.

"Sonic," he began. Sonic released his brother and looked at the golden sphere.

"Yeah, Necrophilen?"

"There is a reason I came to this world. I can give you abilities that you did not have before. However, these are optional. I can give you the ability to change from your Werehog state to normal and vice versa, no matter what the time of day. The other thing I can do is give you the other three World Rings to boost your DarkSpine Sonic form. However, if you defeat me and I give them to you, I will disappear into oblivion. So, do you wish for them? Or no?" the Gold One Bakugan stated. Sonic leaned back and thought.

"New abilities may help us in our quest. Let's do this," Sonic said.

"Very well." They all walked outside and to the park. The others sat on a bench while Sonic and Michael got ready. Dan looked at Speedy.

"Brace yourself. You're about to witness a Bakugan brawl," he stated.

********Start Battle********

"Gate Card, set!" they yelled. Sonic hopped on his Gate Card.

"Bakugan, brawl! Necrophilen, stand!" There was a golden flash on the card, but Sonic didn't see anything.

"Well, where is he?" Michael looked down at the card where Sonic stood. He saw a golden dot growing bigger.

"I think he's coming from under the Gate Card," Dr. Gehahbich replied. Soon, it became a glowing, golden circle. Necrophilen emerged from the circle, revealing his true form. He was a long, serpent-like dragon with arms but no legs. Speedy couldn't help but stare at the Bakugan's true size and form.*

Necrophilen then looked down at Sonic.

_**New battle recognized. Sonic at 340 Gs. Necrophilen at 700 Gs.**_

"Sonic, for this battle, I want you to use all of the strength you have."

"I'm afraid that I don't get what you mean."

"When you absorb the negative energy of the Chaos Emeralds, your strength is more than when you use the positive energy. What you do not know is that you can do the same with the Super Emeralds."

"Really?"

"Yes. I want you to fight me… as Dark Hyper Sonic." Sonic looked at him, unsure of how. "Just think of anything that has upset or angered you." Sonic nodded and closed his eyes. One thing came to mind, and it was more than enough. His hands balled into fists as he growled lightly.

'… Mother… Father…' Tears formed at the corners of his eyes as his anger intensified. In Vestroia, Naga and Metal watched in shock as they saw the Super Emeralds turn black. Sonic reopen his eyes quickly, and they were pure white. The force of energy waves dissipated the small tears. Suddenly, black energy surrounded him and was absorbed, making Sonic's quills go up and turn longer, and it also made his fur rapidly flash darker tones of the Super Emeralds. The negativity radiating off of him was immense. Sonic looked at his Bakupod to see his Gs increasing by 55 each second! His ring count decreased by one each second.

"Very good. Now, let us commence!" Necrophilen charged at Sonic. Sonic dodged, and Michael pulled out an Ability Card. Sonic crossed his arms. Ability Cards didn't affect his Super Form, so he naturally thought it couldn't affect him. He was wrong.

"Ability Card, activate! Fire Judge!"

_**Sonic power decrease of 100 Gs.**_

Sonic realized he could use this to his advantage, and raised his hand in the air.

"Gate Card, open! Super Pyrus!" His voice was much deeper.

_**Power levels switched. Sonic at 700 Gs. Necrophilen at 515 Gs.**_

Sonic gave one solid punch to Necrophilen, and he was defeated. The Gate Card shrank and went to Sonic's hand, and Michael's did the same.

********End Battle********

Sonic reverted, and Necrophilen started to glow. Two small beams shot out of him, and they hit Sonic's arm. It stung a bit, but when it was done, Sonic had a sun and moon design on his arm. The dragon started to disintegrate. Then, three large rings came out and Sonic grabbed them. He looked up, and Necrophilen's head turned into golden sparkles.

"Thank you… Necrophilen…" Sonic said.

"You know, that reminds me!" Christopher said. "I got Juggernoid to evolve into Snapping Juggernoid! I even have his Ability Card! Shell Slam!" Everyone congratulated the 12-year-old. Marucho handed Sonic a sword sheath and a sky-blue backpack.

"What's all of this for, Marucho?"

"I bought that for you this morning. The other four World Rings are in there. The sheath is for this!" Marucho handed Sonic the metal glove and Calibur. Sonic placed the glove on and put the sword in the sheath. He then placed it on his back and tightened the belt. He then opened the backpack, put the three other World Rings inside, closed it, and then placed it on his back. He tightened the straps to make sure it was snug. Dammy handed her Warp Card to Alice. Michael then pulled out his own Warp Card.

"I'm too old to travel, but I wish you two the best of luck," he said. He disappeared in a rainbow flash. Speedy's eyes widened.

"What was that?" he asked. Dan whispered to Sonic for a few seconds. The blue hedgehog looked at his brother.

"Well, Dan told me that we won't be leaving until tomorrow, so allow me to tell you a bit more about my adventures before and after I met the Brawlers," Sonic said, grabbing his wrist.

"How the heck did you and Speedy get together, Amy?" Dan asked. They sat in the park and had a long discussion. After several minutes, Sonic and Speedy returned.

"Hey, guys!" Sonic happily stated. They all sat in a circle in the park. Tails pulled out his cell phone and called the owner of the apartment. He talked for a few minutes.

"… Yeah, just hold off on all of the bills until I get back," Tails finished. "I'll pay them then." He closed his cell phone and turned his attention to the others.

"So, where are we going to first?" Sonic asked.

"I was thinking that we could get your Ancient Light ability," Marucho explained.

"Sounds good to me!"

"Good. We… can… get… this… over… with," Tentaclear said, having a strangely robotic voice.

"Whoo-hoo! I'm not out of the loop, after all! Tentaclear can talk!" Julio cheered. Marucho led them to his skyscraper, which definitely surprised Speedy. He showed him around as the others rested in his living room. They continued chatting until night fell. Speedy and Amy had fallen asleep on the couch. Sonic was a little saddened by the fact that Speedy wouldn't be going, but knew it was for the better.

Morning came much too early for the heroes. Kato woke them up for breakfast, still as nonchalant as ever. They gathered in the dining hall. Sonic seemed to have less of an appetite. He ended up leaving early. Amy looked at Speedy worriedly.

"Do you think it was wrong that we said we don't want to go?"

"Did you want to go?"

"Well, it's dangerous, so no, but-"

"Then it wasn't wrong. Sonic just feels a little upset about this ordeal. I've only been here for four days, counting today, and we're already separating ourselves temporarily." Speedy looked back at his food. Everyone else just worried about Sonic. He picked up the last piece of his meal. "Mother said it's very impolite to finish a meal…" He swallowed the last bite. "It doesn't taste as good as it did a minute ago."

They all left the room, and Kirby decided to let the plate be. Speedy walked down the hall, when he heard noises muffled by the door. He opened it to see Sonic on the bed, crying. Speedy reached into his pocket, pulling out the locket. He wound the gear and held it. Taking his hand off the gear, it started to play. Sonic turned to him. His other items were in a pile in the corner.

"Hey, bro," Speedy whispered.

"What do you want?" He sounded overwrought. Speedy moved to his bedside and set the locket down for it to sing its tune. He sat in silence next to him, knowing it would be better to respond to a question than to answer one. All he could do was absorb the melody that played until Sonic decided to speak. Soon the gears stopped; he grabbed the locket once more, wound the cogs, then set it back in place. "Why did you come here?" Speedy shrugged.

"Simple, I love my little brother and I will let nothing happen to him."

"I don't know why I'm acting like this…" Sonic cried.

"List what you want and I shall listen." He wound the gear again.

"I guess… I don't know…" Sonic grumbled. Speedy put an arm around his shoulder.

"Sonic, I think your conscience is taking this more differently you yourself are. I know I did promise you I'd never leave you. Of course, you have to let your conscience realize that doesn't mean I'd be by your side every minute to make up for the 13 years we were separated." Sonic closed his eyes and smiled as he wiped the tears away.

"Thanks, bro. It's about time my conscience and I agreed on something," he laughed. Speedy joined in, lightening the mood. Sonic went over to the corner and placed everything on. They walked out of the door and into the living room.

"Hey, Sonic, you ready to go?" Dan asked.

"Yeah, I think so!" Sonic said.

"Awesome. We'll meet you in the hangar. Tails, Kato placed the Tornado 2 in the back of the plane. It's in Cyclone Mode right now," Marucho said.

"Alright. Tell him that I said thanks," Tails replied. They all walked to the hangar. Everyone got in but Sonic, who walked to Amy and Speedy. He gave them each a light hug, due to the metal glove.

"You two take care," he said.

"You do the same, little brother," Speedy said.

"Good luck, Sonic," Amy added. He got in the plane, and they took off. They were ready for their next adventure!

**Alright! We are back on track, people! Well then, let's see what's in store for our heroes and Tails!**


	23. When Worlds Collide

Everyone was kicking back in Marucho's private plane, but they were beyond excited to go underwater. Well, Sonic wasn't.

"So, Marucho, where is the submarine?" Dan asked.

"You're in it! This plane has the ability to transform into a submarine that can withstand the deepest part of the ocean!" The others sure were jealous of Marucho. After a few hours, they finally reached Sonic's destination. Kato lowered the plane, and it transformed into a submarine. They slowly sunk down to the bottom of the trench.

"Alright! We're here! The entrance is directly in front of the submarine, Master Marucho."

"Thanks, Kato!" Sonic reluctantly went into the exit hatch.

"Well, wish me luck." Sonic pressed a button, and was lowered into the water. He was now in a glass tube. The metal above him sealed to prevent any water from getting into the sub. Sonic used Spring Jump as soon as the exit opened. He was sprung into the cave. He ran along the ground to find a few glowing orbs coming from a stone circle. He stepped on it and regained Ancient Light. He ran back and used Spring Jump to get out of the cave and into the tube. He was raised back up and the water drained. He stepped out and Dan handed him a towel.

"Here ya go," he said. Sonic dried off. Kato increased the altitude, and they took off for a portal to Hyrule. Suddenly, something in the sky caught their eye. Kato went straight up into the air, and Link gasped.

"It's Hyrule, Termina Field, and the Great Sea!" Link said. "They've combined! Hang on; is that an aurora between them?"

"It seems that the chaos Vestroia is causing is causing your worlds to become one, and it is causing havoc as they are trying to completely fuse," Drago said. They jumped off of the plane, and into Hyrule.

"As soon as we relocate the pieces, we need to stop this calamity as fast as we can. We can't defuse them, but we can make it to where they only fuse at the borders," Tigrerra said. The others nodded, and they headed for the Desert Province. Once they got there, they headed for a huge tower that Link referred to as Arbiters Grounds. Once there, Link recovered the Spinner, and they carefully traversed the old, cobweb filled prison.

"Eeeww! I hate this place! There're icky bugs and icky cobwebs and spiders and all kinds of other icky stuff!" Julie screamed, running from a small spider. The others groaned. After crossing a lot of narrow cliffs, they all reached the center of the tower, where they could spin up and reach the top. Which, they did. They saw a strange stone holder.

"If I'm going to unlock my full power as Wolf Link, I need to find the pieces of the Mirror of Twilight," Link said. He transformed into Wolf Link and activated his Twilight instincts. He could see every Mirror piece near him. He basically went on a running frenzy. The others sat down to wait patiently. Within an hour, Link returned with the completed mirror. It was placed into the holder, and it activated the portal. Link walked up the steps, and stood on the entry point. He went inside to find the princess. The others soon followed. Once they were there, everyone was amazed at how serene it was. Suddenly, Twilight guards appeared in front of them. Everyone but Link was worried. "Don't worry. We don't mean any harm. We came to speak with Princess Midna." The guards backed off and led them to the throne room. Once there, they saw a lady in a black cloak with her back to them.

"Yes, guards, what is it? What do you have for me?" Midna asked.

"We have brought some visitors who claim to be from the other world."

"The other world? Impossible! I accidentally destroyed the mirror!"

"We kinda managed to repair it, Midna," Link said.

"Link? Is that you?"

"Indeed it is." Midna turned around and saw the whole group.

"Who are your friends?" Midna said, shooing the guards away.

"Well, make yourself comfortable, Midna. We have a long story to tell you." Midna sat down, facing the group as Link explained. The others filled in the blank spots. At the end, Midna was pretty surprised. "So, that's why I need your help."

"Well, let me just take care of something." She left for a minute, and returned with her most trusty guard. He sat in the throne. "Okay! Let's go!" Midna shrunk down and went into Link's shadow. They went back to the other world. They all walked in tandem back to the plane. They then tried to figure out where to go next.

"This is cool! All of you are super close to regaining your power!" Masquerade said. "I just wonder how we can fix this calamity about these three areas coming together."

"I have an idea. What do Vestroia and Hyrule have in common?" Ganondorf asked.

"Uh… no clue."

"Vestroia is composed of six elements: Fire, Earth, Light, Darkness, Water, and Wind, right?"

"Right?" Link said.

"Think about the Temple of Time. It also has six elements. Light, Forest, Fire, Water, Shadow, and Spirit. Each of them is relevant to each other. For instance, Forest is to Ventus, and Spirit is kinda like Subterra! If we go to the Sacred Grove, and enter the Temple to Time, we can probably use that to help us!"

"Wow! You sure did think long and hard about that, huh?" Kirby said.

"I sure did!" They all went to the Sacred Grove.

"Hey! I don't see any Temple of Time!" Dan said. Link was walking up the steps.

"This way, guys!" Link hollered. They walked up the steps, and Link opened the door. They stepped inside.

"Where are we?" Alice asked.

"This is the Temple of Time. That door led us into the past."

"The… past? Cool!" Chan said. They walked into the large altar. Joe noticed that there was a small ring around a strange pedestal.

"Hey, Link, is this where the Master Sword was originally placed?" Joe asked.

"Yes. Why?"

"I noticed a small ring around it. Place your sword into it, and then try to turn your sword to move the circle."

"Okay." Link did so, and began to turn it. It was moving. "Hey! I think this is working!" After a 180 degree turn, the Vestroian symbols appeared. Ganondorf's hypothesis was right! Somehow, the ancient people of Hyrule knew about Vestroia! Apollonir, Clayf, Lars Lion, Exedra, Frosch, and Oberus motioned for Dan, Runo, Marucho, Julie, Shun, and Masquerade to come.

"We have something that must be told. Since you are the new soldiers of Vestroia, you have been granted the Keys to Vestroia. If you all stand on your respective symbols, it should fix this problem," Apollonir stated. The Brawlers understood, and stood on their respective symbols. Suddenly, the symbols began to glow. In a flash, six medallions appeared above them, and landed in their hands. They were now granted the Keys to Vestroia.

"Congratulations, new Vestroian Guardians." Oberus said. Suddenly, a key materialized in each of the Brawlers' hands. They saw notches in the center of each symbol. They realized that they had to place the keys in them simultaneously, and they did so. The once blank symbols were now colored. They then went to the Hylian symbols, and did the same. The Hyrule symbols sunk, but left the strange designs up. The keys dissipated. Then, colored fluid started to flow from the Vestroian symbols into their respective Hylian symbols. Link turned his sword again, and they started glowing. A huge aurora shot out, and collided with the aurora connecting Hyrule to Termina Field. The fusion was stopped at the border. They could now go to Termina Field. Link did one final turn, and pulled the sword out. Suddenly, the Hylian medallions landed into their hands as well. He then started walking up the staircase of light. The others followed curiously.

"So, what's supposed to be here, Link?" Dammy asked.

"It's a unique item known as the Dominion Rod. According to this map, it's on the sixth floor. Let's move!" Once they got to the floor to ascend, Julie screamed.

"Aah! Giant icky spiders! Eek!"

"I can handle this," Link said. He jumped into the air and turned into Wolf Link. Midna was riding on his back. Link charged up his Spin Attack, which allowed Midna to channel her magic into him. A large, black circle enveloped every spider in the area, and stunned them. Link then started jumping through every one of them. In just a few seconds, all of the spiders were gone. Julie was relieved. Link turned back to normal. They walked to the elevator, and Link pushed the large lever that took them up. After about a minute, they were at the door to the third floor.

"Cool! An ancient elevator!" Alice said in awe. They walked through the door.

"What the? There are all kinds of traps here! How could we possibly get…?" Before Dan could say anymore, Link placed sturdy statues in front of the spiked disks so they could get through. "Good thinking!" After a few staircases and other traps, they reached the fifth floor. There were humongous spiders everywhere. Julie finally fainted. Billy managed to catch her before she hit the ground.

"You okay?" Billy asked. Julie's eyes fluttered open.

"I guess so." Dan had quickly disposed of the spiders with Drago's fire breath. They quickly ran to the top, and saw that they had to traverse a giant scale. Link took advantage by throwing the heavy statues onto the opposite disk, and they traversed it in just a couple minutes. The next door led them to the Dominion Rod. Link quickly defeated the Darknut protecting it, and retrieved it. Alice warped them back to the entrance. They then left the temple.

"So, Link, what do you have left?"

"Let's see… I need my Iron Boots, Fire, Ice, and Light Arrows, Water Bombs, Bombchus, Bomblings, Zora Tunic, Magic Armor, and Giant Wallet."

"Why do you need a giant wallet?" Marucho asked.

"It's for my Magic Armor."

"Oh. Okay, so let's find this Giant Wallet, then."

"Not find. Earn. We need to find these rare golden bugs." Julie then remembered something. She then took off toward the stairs, and retrieved a snail. She gave it to Link, who placed it in his bag. As soon as Dammy saw how shiny they were, they went on a searching spree. Dammy took off back into the temple and returned with a few. Sara did as well. Link transformed and used the portal to head for Hyrule Field. He returned with 12 more bugs. "Okay, that makes 16, right?"

"Right," Dammy said. They all warped to Hyrule Field, and Dammy and Julie went nuts going around every single area in record time. They returned with four more bugs each.

"Seven… eight! That makes all of them! 24! Come on, we need to head for Hyrule Castle!" They agreed and went to the castle market. Link then took off for a small castle-like building. He entered, and in five minutes, returned with a full, 1000 Rupee wallet. They then took off for the center, and Link purchased the Magic Armor. Once he returned, they headed for the castle to see if Zelda was there. However, according to the guard, she was still in Smash World. "Okay, thank you." They then walked back to the plane.

"So, where to next?" R.O.B. asked.

"We need to head for Zora's Domain to find King Ralis. I'm sure he has a Zora Tunic ready," Link said. The Brawlers were staring at their new medallions.

"I wonder what these medallions are for…" Dan said. He was staring at them both. He then started clicking them together. Suddenly, the edges of the two started to come together. He quickly pulled them apart. Everybody saw it. "Whoa!" Dan then realized what they were for. He put them together again, and they miraculously fused into one elemental medallion! The others did the same.

"Totally cool!" Shun said. They now had strange mystical medallions, each having their own power. Dan then lay down, and drifted off to sleep. Even though Zora's Domain was close, everyone was really tired. After about half an hour, they were there. The Zoras were amazed to see an airplane like that. Once they reached the entrance to the throne room, they were greeted by a few guards.

"Link! Great to see you once again. King Ralis has been expecting you. Right this way," one of them said. They walked into the throne room. There was King Ralis, sitting in his chair.

"Link!"

"Hey, Ralis! I heard that you had become king. Congratulations!"

"Thank you."

"So, you were expecting me?"

"Yes! In fact, I am already aware you the strange predicaments as of late, with all of our worlds fusing together. I have also learned the technique to make Zora Tunics. I have one ready for you." One of his guards gave Link a new tunic.

"Thanks, Ralis. I owe you one."

"No problem. By the way, it seems you have to stop the Great Sea from merging with Termina Field. All you need to do is simply go to the Tower of the Gods, and have Drago activate the Infinity Core and Silent Core, which will cause a chain aurora blast. But first, you must get Princess Zelda. I have already sent a messenger to Smash World to summon her there. She will be waiting for you at the top of the tower. Good luck, all of you!" They nodded, and hopped into the plane. Kato started flying them to the Great Sea.

"How-a did Ralis know everything?" Mario asked.

"Ralis is a highly aware Zora. He can spot trouble from anywhere." Runo was holding a ring in her hand that she had found inside a book.

"Hey, Runo, where'd you get that ring?" Sonic asked.

"I found it inside this book. It's an Arabian Nights storybook. And a pretty good one. There's even one with your name! Sonic and the Secret Rings." As soon as Sonic heard that, he had a great idea.

"I know what that ring is!" Runo gave it to Sonic, and he placed it on. A huge wave of energy came from it, and a voice was heard.

"Hello?" the voice asked.

"Hey, Shahra!" Shahra popped out of the ring.

"Sonic! It's great to see you!" She then looked around at the confused group.

"Guys, this is Shahra, the Genie of the Ring. She helped me take down an evil genie who threatened the world before." Shahra greeted all of them, and then Sonic began to explain their predicament once again.

"So, your quest is to stop all of the worlds from fusing too much and creating havoc?"

"Basically."

"You're practically always busy saving the world, aren't you?"

"It's a gift."

"So, you say you need your Time Break and Speed Break, huh?"

"Yep! And I know how to get them!" Sonic rubbed the ring. "Shahra, if you would?" Shahra gave Sonic some of her power. He had Time Break and Speed Break back.

"Nice, Sonic! So, tell me. How many wishes can Shahra give you?"

"As long as they are important wishes, and I don't abuse them, I think about... ten?"

"Actually, if they are to help you or others, as many as you need," Shahra explained.

"Interesting!" Runo said. She was staring at her huge medallion. "I wonder what these medallions are supposed to do..." Runo said.

"That's a question even we can't answer, but my guess is that it has something to do with you guys being the new Vestroia Guardians," Exedra said.

"That's a very good guess, Exedra," Apollonir remarked. Masquerade was sleeping on the couch, since it would take a while to reach the Great Sea. Marucho tried clicking his new medallion with Shun's, but it didn't work. They were stumped. Dan just got an idea.

"Hey, wait a minute. Since the Infinity Core has revived every Bakugan but the hybrids, maybe Nobilion is back!" Dan said.

"That's a great idea! If he is, we could ask him about these medallions!" Drago said.

"Who?" Shun asked.

"Nobilion is the oldest and wisest Bakugan in Vestroia. He's a Pyrus Tigrerra."

"A Pyrus Tigrerra? Cool!" Alice said.

"But, before we can go to Vestroia, we need to get to Outset Island. Toon Link will be there and he can get us to the Tower of the Gods," Link said. They nodded, and Kato kept on his course. After an hour, they had reached their destination.

"Approaching Outset Island! Hang on!" Kato said. Kato landed the plane onto a large, rocky cliff that was near Toon Link's house. Toon Link, his sister Aryll, and their grandmother were there, waiting. The gang walked up to them.

"Hey, Toon Link!" Link said.

"Hi, guys! How are you?"

"Fine. You think you could give us a ride to the Tower of the Gods?"

"If it's to stop that weird aurora over there, no problem!"

"Great! Cuz' that's why we're here!" Dan said.

"Great! Let's go!" Toon Link said. He led them to the dock, and waited. He pulled out his sister's telescope.

"Who are you waiting for?" Alice asked.

"A few friends. Wait! There they are!" Toon Link gave Dan the telescope, and they saw a huge pirate ship. Within minutes, they were there.

"Hey, you guys!"

"Hey, Link!" said a feminine voice. It was a female pirate. A group of male pirates were with her. Tetra lowered the drawbridge, and Toon Link climbed up. He motioned for the others to come. They reluctantly followed. Once on board, Toon Link introduced the gang to the pirates, and vice versa. They all shook hands. "So, Link, what do you need?"

"We just need a ride to the Tower of the Gods."

"Alrighty then! Niko! Hoist the mainsail!"

"On it, miss!"

"So, Niko is an actual pirate and no longer a swabbie?" Toon Link asked.

"Pretty much."

"So, why do you guys need a ride to the Tower of the Gods, anyway?"

"Well, we're going to go stop the Great Sea from merging with Termina Field. That's why that aurora is there," Dan explained.

"I see." Tetra continued barking orders to her staff. As they sailed, the ship suddenly stopped.

"Princess Zelda! Trouble!" one of the pirates said.

"I told you to call me Tetra!"

"Sorry, miss! But there's trouble ahead! A huge blockade of ferocious Seahats is 100 feet away!" The gang ran to the bow, and saw ugly, flying puffer fish that were about ten feet tall.

"Man! What a bunch of butt-ugly creatures!" Dan said. Link and Toon Link brought out their arrows. Dan and the others brought out their Bakugan. Tetra was quite surprised to see such huge creatures. They quickly disposed of the Seahats and continued onward. Within an hour, they reached their destination. Toon Link carefully led them to the top, where Zelda was waiting.

"Hey, Zelda!" Link said.

"Hello, Link." Zelda then showed them that she had discovered something. It was a large, strange rectangle with a picture of the Triforce on it. However, in the center were two large circles. They understood what was needed. Zelda, Link, and Ganondorf held out their right hands, and the Triforce pieces came out. Drago shot out the Infinity Core and Silent Core. The combined powers opened the rectangle. The items returned to them. Now that the rectangle had disappeared, it led them to a door, with the same marking in the center, but it then had the six medallion impressions. All of them did the same, and an aurora shot out, and cancelled out the aurora between Termina Field and the Great Sea. Once again, the items returned to them. They met back at the ship, and set sail for Outset Island. When they got there, the pirates left for another adventure.

"Okay, so now what do you need?" Toon Link asked.

"Think you could take me to Mother and Child Isles to get the Fire and Ice arrows?" Link asked.

"Sure! Hop on!" The two Links hopped onto Toon Link's boat, and Toon Link pulled out his Wind Waker. In a turbulent cyclone, the two instantaneously warped to the faraway island. In just a few minutes, they returned. Link had the two arrows. There was only one more arrow to go. Zelda used her magic and gave Link the Light Arrows. He only had a few more things to go. The only things he needed were his Iron Boots, Water Bombs, Bombchus, and Bomblings. In order to get his Iron Boots, Water Bombs, and Bomblings, they needed to go back to Hyrule. Toon Link waved goodbye as they left. They traveled to Kakariko Village, where Link purchased the bombs from Barnes. Link then warped them to a small lake near his home of Ordon Village. They then walked to a tree, which was actually a house. A very large man stepped out.

"Hello, Link! How are you?"

"Just fine, Bo." He turned to the others. "Guys, this is Bo, the mayor of Ordon."

"Nice to meet you!" Bo told the others. They did the same, and stepped inside. A girl who was dusting greeted them.

"Hi, Link!"

"Hey there, Ilia!" Link said. "That's Ilia, Bo's daughter." He turned to Bo. "Hey, Bo, I need to speak to you. I need the Iron Boots back."

"Sure thing!" Bo went and lifted a heavy chest, and placed it on the ground. Link opened it, and pulled them out. They shrank into his Triforce. He waved goodbye to Ilia, and they left back for the plane. They dropped Zelda off at Hyrule Castle. Dan shot Link a smirk. He had realized the two liked each other. Link shot a look that said, _Don't you give me that look._ Dan only smiled and faced forward. Everyone knew what they meant. Masquerade was still staring at his medallion.

"How come you've been staring at that thing so much?" Dammy asked.

"I find mysteries intriguing, that's all."

"Well, once we get to Vestroia, I'm sure the mystery will be solved."

"Yeah. I'm excited to find out. Just a couple more power ups for Link, and then we can go to Vestroia…" Masquerade said.

"And, besides maybe learning about these medallions, we can collect my three power ups as well!" Samus said. They were all excited. But first things first, they needed to get Link's power ups. Only his Bombchus were left. They flew to Termina Field. As soon as they got there, however, they realized that it was shaking. Link noticed there was still an aurora in it that they needed to neutralize. They made their way to the center town, and Link purchased the Bombchus.

"Okay, now what? How do we stop this aurora and the earthquakes?" Julio asked.

"I think I know. Come with me," Link said. They ran up the clock tower and went to the roof. Link noticed on the design that there was a small mirror in it. He shone his Triforce on it, and it quickly shot out a beam to the moon. The moon then shone so brightly that they all had to wear sunglasses temporarily. The light obliterated the aurora, and the shaking stopped. They looked around and saw that mountains had formed where the auroras were. The three worlds may have been connected, but at least they were saved. They could now relax for a while.

"Alright! This is so cool! Next stop, Vestroia!" Dan cheered.

"Yes. But first we need to find the portal," Drago pointed out.

"Speaking of portals, I saw on the news the other day that a strange colored disc has appeared at the top of Ever Peak. What if that's it?" Sara asked.

"It's worth a shot! Let's go, Kato!"

"On it, Dan!" The gang, now with Midna and Shahra on their side, went on to the next part of their journey.

**Alright! Now we're back into the action! Looks like the Smashers are going to get the chance to see Vestroia for the first time! What will await them there? Only Chapter 24 will tell!**


	24. The Mystery of the Medallions

The humongous group was still in the plane, talking about random subjects, when Sonic noticed that Marth was still staring at Lars Lion, making her laugh a lot.

"Are you STILL fawning over Lars Lion? Sheesh, Marth!" Sonic said.

"You're worse than Brock is!" Pikachu groaned. Mario walked over and whispered something to Marth. No one could hear what he had said, but apparently, it was out of Mario's character because Marth's face was so red that he felt his face burning. Also, he had a freaked out look on his face. Everyone was cracking up. They all wanted to know what he said, but Mario shook his head. Suddenly, Dan got the idea, and started laughing.

"Oh my gosh! Mario, you are twisted!" Dan said.

"You-a have an idea of what I said?"

"Pretty much." Marth eventually cooled off, and kept tapping his chin and opening his mouth. They could tell he was trying to think of a comeback. However, after five minutes, Marth was stumped.

"Oh, forget it!" Marth said. He quickly gave Mario a hard slap to the face. He left a handprint on Mario's left cheek.

"Mama mia! That-a hurt!" Mario exclaimed.

"Don't you dare say that again!" Marth warned. Everyone was laughing but the two. Marth sat down, and started to relax.

"Dang. I tell ya, we're almost always busy when it comes to Bakugan. The only bad part is that...school starts in just a month," Dan said. Alice, Masquerade, and Dammy mocked them.

"Ha ha! You have to go to school and we don't!" Masquerade teased. Dan growled at the statement.

"I may be taking college, but I can still travel. My college courses are online!" Sara commented. Dan was really jealous. Sara could do her school work at her own pace, while he couldn't. "Speaking of which, Solero, did you finish my summer essay yet?"

"Indeed I did. Here you are," Solero said, popping out of her backpack. She took the essay out and sealed it in an envelope. Within a few short hours, they reached their goal.

"I still don't see why we fly instead of warp," Dan said.

"It gives us time to relax," Alice said.

"Speaking of relaxing, has anyone else but me noticed that Naga and Metal Sonic have been rather quiet? It's been days, and there have been no attacks at all," Masquerade said. The gang immediately stopped what they were doing. No one had even considered that.

"Gee, thanks for being the voice of dread, Masquerade!" Amy groaned. Dammy didn't like Amy insulting Masquerade like that.

"Hey! Masquerade was only stating something important. He is right you know. What if they're planning a wide-scale invasion?" Dammy said.

"Whatever. Come on! We have to hurry!" Marucho said. Sara quickly dropped off the envelope in a mailbox, and the gang took off to the top of Ever Peak. Indeed, there was a large, rainbow circle above the huge, lava filled crater. Drago, Apollonir, Harpus, and Skyress returned to normal size, and the others climbed on. In just a few minutes, they found themselves inside a long, multicolored tunnel. Speedy was getting dizzy, but managed to retain consciousness. Within 30 seconds, they were in the beautiful sanctuary. It was kinda like a smaller version of Earth. Green breezes and white spheres traveled through the air. Black ash covered ground and mountains flowed with lava. Huge brown caves with yellow crystals were abound. Small, flat icebergs floated in clear water. What was even cooler was that all of their Bakugan were normal size.

"Amazing! This place is...too cool for words!" Amy said. Dammy, Sara, Tails, Amy, Speedy, and the smashers were in awe. None of them could even begin to think of many words to say. However, their thoughts were interrupted when an old Pyrus Tigrerra appeared.

"Dan! Drago! How are ya?" the old Bakugan wheezed.

"Knowa Lion! It is you!" Drago said.

"So, these are your friends! Well! It's a pleasure! So, whaddaya need?" Dan pulled out his medallion. So did Runo, Marucho, Julie, Shun, and Masquerade. Knowa Lion seemed impressed.

"We were granted these mystic medallions, but we have no idea what they're for," Runo explained.

"Well, it's obvious that you received the Vestroia medallions since you are the new soldiers of Vestroia, as for the Hyrule medallions, that must mean that the sages of Hyrule have entrusted you with their power. That had something to do with the Vestroia medallions. I am truly amazed that you managed to combine them."

"Well, Apollonir said something about Guardians of Vestroia. Does that have anything to do with it?"

"Indeed it does!" Knowa Lion laughed. "You see, before the soldiers of Vestroia appeared, when Vestroia was united once before, there were six Guardians of Vestroia. That was a millennium ago, however. They gave their power to the soldiers, and gave the rest to the Oocca, the first people of Hyrule. They must've given it to the Sages. Now that you have both medallions, you have both titles! You guys are soldiers, and guardians!" All of them were amazed.

"So, how do they, you know, work?" Masquerade asked.

"Simple! Follow me!" Knowa Lion asked. They all followed the old Bakugan across the black, rugged field. However, what they didn't know was that Naga and Metal Sonic were there.

"Master, should I...?"

"No. I prefer a challenge. Let them gain their powers. Once they are at their full potential, I shall mobilize my dark army!" Naga sneered.

"I must say, you are more brilliant than my old master. He would always rush into situations. You must be very sure of yourself to be so patient."

"Of course! Just wait. Those insolent fools will be in for the shock of their lives!" The two evil doers disappeared to go back to the center of Vestroia. "Stupid Chaos Emeralds. They are slowing down the fusion of the dimensions, allowing those heroes to save their precious homes! How I deeply despise unfortunate circumstances!" he growled. Metal Sonic agreed.

"I have just received word that Donkey Kong's jungle is beginning to morph to Earth, in the interior of the Amazon Jungle. Maybe we could pay him a surprise visit!" Metal Sonic suggested. Naga snickered with delight. The two began to plan their second attack on Earth. Their Shadow Bakugan minions were also snickering with glee. Meanwhile, in the actual part of Vestroia, Knowa Lion was slowly leading the Brawlers and smashers to a large temple of white stone. Once inside, they saw the same six impressions, but this time, there were six inscriptions on the wall.

"This place is called the Haven of Virtue. This was where the Guardians of Vestroia were born. If you guys are destined to be the next Guardians, I think something should happen if you hold your medallions up to the sky while standing on your symbols," Knowa Lion said. Dan, Runo, Marucho, Julie, Shun, and Masquerade set their Bakugan down on the floor. They then slowly walked to their symbols and did as they were instructed. Once their medallions were above them, they began to glow brightly! The light was almost blinding, but they kept their focus. After about ten seconds, the medallions were slowly absorbed into their left hands. After the huge event, they noticed that they had glowing auras around them, and the symbols were on their hands.

"Holy crud! It worked!" Dan said.

"This is amazing!" Marucho said.

"Wait until my mom hears about this!" Shun said. Slowly, they disappeared.

"Whoa! What just happened?" Masquerade said.

"Looks like you guys are destined to be the new Guardians of Vestroia! The only reason they disappeared is because you need to activate them by saying your attribute name. After that, you will have the power of your attributes!" Knowa Lion explained.

"Cool!" Julie said.

"Hey, Knowa Lion, how come you're still staying here? Why don't you come with us to Earth?" Runo asked.

"Na. That's okay. I kinda prefer this quiet. It's pretty peaceful to be in this place and being able to relax. I might join you later on," Knowa Lion explained.

"Okay. Well, we'd better hurry to find your power-ups, Samus. Hang on, Knowa Lion, is the whole time thing still..." Dan began.

"No. In fact, since Vestroia is starting to converge to Earth, it's time stream has changed. The same amount of time you've spent here in Vestroia is how much has passed on Earth."

"Phew. That's good," Joe said. The group left Knowa Lion in search of Samus' three power-ups.

"Okay, according to this map, my Sphere form is in the southernmost cave." She pointed in that direction. They went aerial, and saw the large cave. They decided to walk there to help pass the time. As they walked, Amy was snapping pictures of everything.

"What's all this stuff for, Amy?" Sonic asked.

"I like to take pictures of exotic places. It's a small hobby of mine. There is one place I'd like to take pictures of, but the thing is, we can't get there."

"Where's there?" Mario asked.

"Outer Space," Amy responded.

"Hey! That gives me-a an idea!" Mario said.

"What's that?"

"I happen to know this lady, who travels around space on a small house built around a comet. She could help us! In fact, a couple of my power-ups are in space!" Mario explained.

"Seriously?" Julio asked.

"Uh huh!" Mario said.

"Okay, we should be just about...there!" Samus exclaimed. They were just 100 feet in front of the cave. They ran to it in earnest. Once there, Samus stopped them. "We'd best be careful. No telling if other alien life forms could be in here."

"Agreed," Runo said. They slowly walked through the lit cave.

"Seems clear, but that's always the case in dangerous places," Christopher said. As soon as he said that, a huge, black creature popped out of the shadows!

"A Metroid Prime!"

"Don't worry, Samus! I got this!" Julie said. She placed her hand out, with the back of it facing the creature, like Link did when he activated his Triforce. "Subterra!" The symbol appeared on her hand. "By the power of the Subterra Guardian! Rockfall Trap!" Suddenly, huge boulders slammed into the Metroid, stunning it. "Now! Gate Card, set! Ability Card, activate! Grand Slide!" Gorem jumped on the Gate Card, and caused it to move into another tunnel. Gorem jumped off quickly, and the Metroid Prime was squashed in the wall. "Alright! We did it, Gorem!" Julie hopped onto his shoulder. Dan was gawk-eyed.

"That was amazing, Julie! How did you know how to create a Rockfall Trap?" Dan said.

"It's easy! I can control Earth, just by saying it! Go on! Try it!" Julie said. Runo did what Julie did.

"Haos!" The symbol appeared. "By the power of the Haos Guardian! Flashlight Sphere!" A white sphere appeared around her hand. She used the sphere as a bright flashlight.

"Nice thinking, Runo!" Dan said. Mario formed a fireball in his hands to boost the lighting. Carefully and quietly, they strolled to the end of the long tunnel. Eventually, they found themselves within a small cavern. In the middle, there was a hologram of a sphere. Samus walked up to it, and suddenly, she was a ball! She then turned back into normal form, then her sphere form again. However, after she downloaded the data, a huge landslide blocked the exit! Julie walked up to it.

"Augh!" Julie groaned. "Looks like this one is too large for me to control. I haven't totally mastered my new powers yet..."

"Hang on! Look! A small hole! Samus, try using your Sphere Form and roll to the end!" R.O.B. said. Samus did so.

"Hey! Look! There's a door activation button! Let me try it!" Samus pushed the button, which caused a door in the room with the others to open. She immediately returned to them, and they exited the large tunnel. Once outside, they decided to look for her Freeze Ray. It was in the Aquos region, inside of an iceberg. They immediately found it, but it was deep in it. Dan had an idea, and whispered to Mario. Mario agreed.

"Pyrus!" Dan said. Mario charged up his Mario Finale. "By the power of the Pyrus Guardian! Mega Fire Blast!"

"Supreme...Dragon!" Drago yelled. A huge fireball formed in his mouth. Mario blasted his Mario Finale. Dan shot his Mega Fire Blast, and it combined with Drago's fireball. It was now surrounded by Mario's two smaller ones, and they blasted the ice. Over half the iceberg melted, and Samus was able to retrieve her Freeze Ray.

"Hey! While we're here, why don't we have a little recreation?" Alice said. She had some ice skates in her backpack. Dammy, Sara, Chan-Lee, Runo, Julie, Shiori, and Daisy cheered. They skated on the ice, having a lot of fun. The guys did some ice sledding. Knowa Lion, who was watching them, seemed to enjoy watching them have fun. After they had come back from a 500 foot sled run, Dan had a question.

"Hey, do you think these powers could boost our Bakugans' power levels?"

"Maybe so, Dan. I must say, I'm glad you guys are the new Guardians. You should feel lucky!"

"I am!" Marucho said, twirling the ocean and making waves. Sara was just admiring him.

"Aaaah..." Sara sighed. Dammy just rolled her eyes.

"Boy, Sara, you sure really like Marucho, don't you?" Dammy asked.

"Yeah...he's cute..." Sara oohed. Marucho laughed a little and blushed. He stopped what he was doing and sat down beside her. Sara was going into a giggle fit. Marucho put his left arm around her waist, and pulled her close. He could tell that's what she wanted. She immediately relaxed, and she rested her head against his shoulder. She wrapped her arm around him as well. Marucho then rested his head on top of hers. Seeing the two so close brought Dammy to tears. Masquerade noticed that and walked up to her.

"You okay there, Dammy?" Masquerade asked.

"Yeah, I...I'm fine. It's just, seeing those two like that reminds me of how happy I am to be with someone who really cares about me. That's all," she said, wiping her few tears away. Masquerade sighed as well.

"Me too." The two sat down, enjoying each others' company. Of course, the two couples kissed. Speedy and Tails felt rather jealous that most of them had boyfriends or girlfriends. Although Tails knew that Cream had a crush on him, he liked Cosmo a lot better. He still had the seed that Cosmo left behind, and it was growing steadily in his lab. Speedy was jealous from the simple fact that he didn't even know anyone who had a crush on him. However, they were happy for Sonic. He managed to finally realize that he liked Amy. Even Sonic was rather more cheerful. The only part that Sonic didn't like was that everyone he passed knew about it, which made him a red hedgehog at times. Who would've thought he could blush so much? After about an hour, they decided they wasted enough time and continued to search for Samus' Phazon Beam. It was located in the Ventus section, up in the sky. Not too hard, right? They just needed to find a small orange energy cannon floating endlessly through the sky! Shun got an idea. He hopped on Skyress and the two headed into the sky.

"Gate Card, set!" Skyress got onto the Gate Card. "Ability Card, activate! Blow Away!" Skyress flapped her wings and reversed the flow of the wind. Suddenly, an orange object came towards them! "Ventus!" The Ventus symbol appeared on Shun's hand. "By the power of the Ventus Guardian! Wind Stall!" The wind stopped. Samus jumped up and grabbed her Phazon Beam.

"Alright! Got it!" Samus said. Shun and Skyress went back down to the ground.

"That....was amazing!" Masquerade said. "You know, it's too bad that I have no idea what my powers can do..."

"Hey! Don't worry; I'm sure that you'll..." Dan tried to say.

"Like it's any of your business!" Masquerade snapped. He immediately turned the other way. "I'm sorry. It's just that I'm..."

"Jealous?" Tails and Speedy finished. Masquerade jumped as the two had not said a word.

"Yeah. A little..."

"Hey, don't feel so bad. I'm pretty sure the rest of the guys are jealous. They don't even have powers!" Tails said. "But of course, I'm also a little jealous that you all have some one. I know that Cream likes me, but I still prefer Cosmo, and she isn't totally recovered yet."

"You mean that plant alien in Sonic X? The one who left that seed behind?" Sonic asked.

"Yeah. And also, I'm pretty sure Speedy's jealous at the fact that most of you have someone. Eh?" Tails nudged him with his elbow.

"Mother and Father taught me to never be even the slightest bit mad towards others' relationships, Tails."

"Yeah yeah. Whatever," he taunted. Speedy then tugged on his right ear. "Youch! Do that to Sonic, not me!" Tails said, favoring his ear.

"Would you like me to demonstrate what they did when I had an attitude about it?" Speedy taunted.

"I recommend you don't. These tails here could kill you if I wanted to use them," Tails warned.

"I'd just doge it at supersonic speed, you know."

"Speedy, I'd do as he says. He can move at supersonic speed too," Sonic said. Speedy immediately recoiled as he realized what he was doing. He was starting an argument with one of his own friends! He had just broken another one of his parents' teachings. Speedy walked away glumly and sat on a flat rock. He pulled out the locket, and tried to look at it. He could even look at a picture of his mother, he was so ashamed.

"Forgive me...mother..." Speedy whispered so softly that only Sonic's keen ears could hear. Sonic walked over to him.

"It's fine, Speedy! Don't beat yourself up!" he said in a reassuring voice. "Even the best of friends don't get along. It's perfectly normal." Tails was grumbling.

"Oh, paaaalease. Get a room you two!" Tails growled. Amy bonked him on the head with her hammer.

"Tails! That was uncalled for!"

"Since when you do care about what I think?" Tails asked. Amy was about to say something, but Sonic placed a finger over her lips.

"It's okay, Amy. I think Tails isn't just jealous about the fact the fact of all the couples, including us."

"Well? You have a brother. I don't even know if any members of family are still alive. Where does that leave me at?" Tails said. He lowered his head, masking his eyes. He didn't want anyone to know how badly he was really hurting. Of course, Sonic saw it and went over to him. He placed his hand on Tails' shoulder.

"Tails, listen. Even though we aren't related, I've always seen you as a little brother. That basically makes Speedy an older brother figure as well. So, you do have a family. Okay?" Tails nodded and let a few tears fall. He was glad that Sonic always understood him.

"You sure do have a way with people, little bro. And I thought you hated seeing tears!"

"Not if they're necessary. Then I don't mind. Well, since we're done here, we'd better get going."

"Good idea. Hey, wait! The portal's gone!" Dan hollered. Everyone looked up. He was right! The giant portal to Earth had disappeared. Dammy lost it.

"Ah! We're stuck! This is so not good! I don't want to be here forever!" she screamed. Masquerade grabbed her by the wrist.

"Dammy! Calm down!" he said with a raised voice. He then lowered it. "Don't worry; we'll get out of here. Okay?" Dammy calmed down.

"Okay." Masquerade gave her a little peck on the cheek, and went to join the others.

"Well, I'm totally stumped," Dan said.

"So typical of you to give up so easily, Dan," Ganondorf growled.

"I don't see you coming up with any ideas!" Link snapped.

"So what! That's not my job!"

"Man, you are so arrogant!"

"That's enough, you two! Your arguing is giving me a headache!" Dan yelled. Link and Ganondorf felt rather ashamed. They weren't helping by getting mad. Ganondorf sat on a rock and started thinking. Link did the same. Suddenly, Link got an idea.

"Hey! I got something! Since you guys are the Guardians, maybe you could combine your powers to open a portal to Earth!" Link suggested.

"It's worth a shot!" Masquerade said. They positioned themselves in the way the symbols were.

"Pyrus!"

"Haos!"

"Aquos!"

"Subterra!"

"Ventus!"

"Darkus!" The symbols appeared on their hands and shone into the air.

"By the powers of the Guardians of Vestroia! Portal to Earth, open!" they said in unison. Beams shot out of their hands and formed a green ring. They quickly brought their left hands down in a slashing motion. A rainbow disk formed inside the green ring.

"Alright! It worked!" Daisy said.

"You guys sure are resourceful!" Billy said.

"You know, I'm impressed! It's almost as if you instinctively know how to work those new powers!" Komba said. They all climbed onto the flying Bakugan and left Vestroia. A lot sure happened there. As soon as they got back, all of the other Brawler's parents were there, plus Shun's grandfather. That sure was a nice surprise!

"Dan! How are you?"

"Hey, Mom! What are you guys doing here?"

"We just came here to go shopping. We had no idea you'd be here! Hey, what's that on your left hand? Is that a..."

"No, it's not a tattoo, mom. But you all better make yourselves comfortable. We have something cool to tell you." The Brawlers' parents sat down. "Well, this weirdo thing started not too long ago. After we got Sonic's Ancient Light ability, we saw that Hyrule, the Great Sea, and Termina Field were here on Earth, and beginning to fuse. We managed to save them, and got these six medallions in the process."

"You see, when we beat the legendary soldiers five years ago, we became the new soldiers. Apparently, we were granted the powers of the legendary Sages of Hyrule, and were granted the title of the Guardians of Vestroia. When we went to the Haven of Virtue in Vestroia, we absorbed the medallions, and were granted elemental powers," Marucho continued.

"Like this! Check it out! Haos!" They saw the symbol appear on her hand. "Now, watch this!" Runo was moving her hand, and the brightness of a nearby lamp changed. They were truly amazed.

"Wow!" Runo's mom said with surprise. "That's quite the power!"

"Indeed!" Runo's dad added.

"Well, I guess we could stick around to do some shopping as well. And also...." Dan was interrupted by his stomach growling. "...I'm hungry."

"Yeah! Let's eat!" Kirby said. If there was one word that Kirby loved, it was food. They all went inside to the food court before shopping. Dammy and Masquerade went to the Burger King and each ordered a Double Whopper and Coke. The others went to the pizza place. Sonic was sitting elsewhere. He wasn't hungry. Dammy didn't care much for pizza, and Masquerade just wanted to keep her company. Dan whispered something to Runo about the two that made her giggle. As Masquerade slurped his Coke, he accidentally burped with so much force he accidentally fell out of his chair. The other half of his Whopper separated and splat all over his face. The others went into an uncontrollable uproar of laughter. Dammy fell backwards from the laughter. She helped Masquerade up. He quickly grabbed some napkins and wiped his face off. He then went over and ordered a Whopper Jr. The two basically ate, talked, and joked with each other.

"Boy, he sure is having a good time!" Dan said.

"I concur! Ever since he met Dammy, he's been a totally new person!" Marucho added.

"Kinda like Sonic! You notice how he's been a lot more cheerful lately?" Tails said.

"Of course! He finally has a girl!" Julie said.

"You know, I know this isn't going to sound right, but I'm kinda glad we met Theodore," Tails said.

"Huh?!" everyone said, including Masquerade and Dammy. They heard him. Sonic was dumbfounded and slightly angry.

'What?! Tails?! Happy we... What?!' Sonic though angrily.

"Here's the way I see it. If Sonic never met Theodore, he never would've learned about his mom and dad, or Speedy. Had he not, he wouldn'tve known Theodore silenced his parents and separated him from his brother. Had he not known that, he wouldn't have gotten desperate, which would've prevented him from not knowing how much Amy cared. If that didn't happen, Sonic wouldn't be as happy as he is now. See what I mean?" Tails explained. Sonic realized he meant that in a good way, and relaxed. Everybody was rather pleased at Tails' opinion.

"You know, that does make a lot of sense!" Shiori said. Shun's grandfather nodded. He wasn't as skeptical as he was five years ago. After a pleasant lunch, they all left. After Dan and Runo were far enough away, Dan's mother and father noticed Kirby seemed a little sweaty as he looked at the two.

'Kirby obviously knows something about Dan and Runo that I don't. I wonder what?' they both thought. Dan turned and saw his Mom and Dad looking at Kirby. He was totally red for some reason...and then it hit him. Kirby knew about what went on a week ago, and he had just remembered it. Dan looked at Runo and pointed at Kirby. Runo saw it as well. The two started to sweat above their eyebrows. They were totally nervous. The next time they turned around, the five were gone!

"Not good, not good, not good!" they hollered, and ran off, with everyone exchanging glances.

"Ooh, those two are in trouble!" they all said. They continued walking. Back in the arcade, Dan's and Runo's parents had cornered Kirby.

"Okay, Kirby, what are you hiding about Dan and Runo?" The two mothers said.

**I think I'll just leave it here as a cliffhanger. Gotta love 'em! So, looks like the Brawlers and Smashers are back on track! Next Chapter, another smasher joins the others! Here are two hints: he's brown, and big!**


	25. A New Member

Dan and Runo were frantic. They just had to find a place to hide. If they got Kirby to spill it, they were sure they'd be in trouble. Everyone was laughing at the two, since they were so paranoid. Meanwhile, Dan's mom and Runo's mom were staring at a now white Kirby, who was sweating like crazy.

"Well?" Dan's mom insisted. Kirby gulped from the nervousness, but still remained quiet. Then, Runo's dad had an idea. He got a chocolate bar and waved it in front of Kirby, who was drooling as his eyes followed the delicious candy bar. Slowly, Runo's Dad tormented him by eating it in front of him slowly. Kirby was going nuts.

"Okay! Okay! I'll talk!" Kirby exclaimed. Dan and Runo heard him, and then finally found decent hiding places. He still held it, but didn't eat it. "Well, you see, they...kinda...did something...strange..." Kirby was only a little kid, so he couldn't really explain. Dan's mom cocked an eyebrow, puzzled. She mulled it over a bit, and spontaneously fell over backwards with laughter. After about a minute, she stood back up and whispered something to the other three, which sent them into fits of laughter as well. Runo's dad threw the candy bar, and Kirby sucked it up. After they all recovered, they went around looking for the two. In just a minute, they caught up to the group.

"Where's Runo?" her mom asked.

"The two lovebirds went to find hiding spots upstairs," Captain Falcon said. The four walked up the stairs, still laughing a little.

"So, I take it they got you to spill the beans?" Lucario asked. He noticed brown stuff around his mouth.

"Stupid chocolate bar..." Kirby said.

"They tortured you with chocolate? Ouch!" Julio remarked.

"Yeah...ouch..." Kirby felt ashamed. The last thing he wanted was to get a few of his friends in trouble. After about five minutes, they were surprised with a couple shouts.

"Aha! Found you!" the two mothers said from different parts of the store.

"Uh oh..." Sara said. She was sure it wasn't going to be a pleasant chat. She expected to hear shouting, but didn't. In just a minute, the six returned. Dan and Runo were red, but smiling. They noticed that both of Runo's parents had handprints on their cheeks. Apparently, they had totally freaked Runo out.

"Well, that went better than we both thought!" Dan said, smiling.

"Sure did!" Runo agreed. Runo's parents were favoring their stinging faces.

"Geez, Runo, you sure did go crazy!" Klaus said.

"They had it coming," Runo quickly explained. She didn't even want to repeat what they had said, it embarrassed her so much.

"So, guys, how about we..." Marucho began, before they were interrupted by two very, _very_, familiar feminine voices.

"Hey there, cuties!" they shouted. Dan and Marucho slowly turned to greet them.

"Well if it isn't Jenny," Dan said.

"And Jewels," Marucho said.

"Who?" Mario asked.

"Jenny and Jewels Super Sync Sound Extravaganza. They're singers," Marucho explained.

"Hey there! What are you guys doing here?" Jenny said flirtatiously.

"We were just looking around," Dan replied. Jenny walked over to him.

"How's about you spend some time with me, handsome? Forget these guys! Come on!" Jenny begged, trying to tug his arm. Runo was red with fury.

"Sorry Jenny, but if you want me as your boyfriend, I'm taken." Dan turned to Jewels. "Marucho is, too." The two were taken aback.

"What?! Who?!" Jenny exclaimed with envy. Dan pointed to Runo, and Marucho pointed to Sara. The two sisters were absolutely furious.

"What's wrong with us, huh?! We not good enough for ya?!" Jewels roared.

"Basically, yes. And besides, she didn't try flirting with me anyway. Runo likes me for who I am." Jenny was so mad, she had to say something.

"Well I'm glad you have her! You were meant for each other!" she yelled with rage in her voice. "Know why?! Cuz' you're both so stubborn and hot-headed!" Now Runo was mad.

"That's it! You can insult either of us separately if you want, but no one makes fun of us being together! Haos!" The two girls were freaked out when they saw the symbol on her left hand. "By the power of the Haos Guardian!" Runo held an Ability Card in front of the symbol. "Haos Freeze!" The symbol shone through the card, and it hit the two singers. They were instantly paralyzed.

"Hey! I...can't move!" Jenny exclaimed.

"Me neither!"

"Haos...Warp!" Runo quickly brought her arm down, and the girls instantly turned gold, and disappeared. They were transported to another part of the mountain. When they landed, they were in total shock. So was their manager, who saw the whole thing.

"How...did you do that?" she asked, interested.

"Haos powers, that's all."

"That was...something! So, where the heck did you warp them to?"

"Another part of the mountain, not too far from here."

"Oh. Okay!" The manager rushed out the door, pushing many people out of the way.

"She sure is rude!" Marth commented.

"That's a manger of a singer for ya," Shun answered.

"She's not so bad," Alice said. "She only is looking out for the two, preventing them from being mobbed by fans."

"Yeah, I guess. Hey, I think I know where we can go next! My Invincibility power up is in the Amazon Jungle!" Sonic explained.

"The Amazon? Awesome! I would love to take pictures there!" Amy cheered. They all walked toward the plane, while the other parents stayed behind. As they talked, they had no idea that Jenny and Jewels snuck aboard. Well, actually, they were hanging onto the bottom of the plane, looking through a glass floor. They wanted to find out for sure if Runo and Dan, and Marucho and Sara, were actually together. Runo kept looking down at the ground, away from Dan. Dan could tell she felt kinda ashamed about a week ago.

"Listen, Dan...I'm sorry." Dan gave her a confused look. "You know, about...what happened..."

"I have no idea why you always say something is your fault when it isn't."

"But it..."

"Do you have a guilty conscience or something?"

"Why do you always insist on cheering me up?"

"You already know why, Runo. Don't pretend like you don't know."

"But still...it is my fault..." Runo turned away. It was strange how she didn't snap. Dan put a hand on her shoulder, which made her turn back around.

"Runo?"

"Hm?" Dan gave her a smile.

"Shut up," he said in a serious, yet cheerful tone. He placed a hand on her cheek. "Don't beat yourself up, okay?" He then kissed her passionately. Jenny wanted to scream! He was with Runo! Jewels wasn't as mad, but she still was. She was looking at Marucho and Sara, who weren't really doing anything. She wanted to go over to him, but she couldn't blow her cover. Sara seemed a bit jealous at how the other couples, besides Sonic and Amy, were so passionate toward each other.

"How come we can't be like that?" she muttered to no one in particular. Marucho put his arm around her.

"You don't have to be like that to be in love, Sara. Trust me. There are all different kinds of affection. Like Dan told Runo, don't be so hard on yourself." Sara blushed. She felt like she would explode, but kept her cool. Marucho gave her a little kiss on the cheek, which made her sigh. Okay, now Jewels was mad. She just wanted to strangle Sara, but seeing how happy the two were made her change her mind. Jenny, however, was furious. Dan was HER boyfriend! Or so she thought. Jenny actually risked getting in, but Jewels stopped her. Jewels waved her finger in her face.

"Jenny, trust me. Dan apparently isn't the one for you. Why are you so worked up?" she whispered.

"Yeah, you're right. It just makes me angry that Dan prefers that...that...weirdo, over a popular gal like me."

"What about Julio?"

"That bodybuilder over there? You wish." The two detached the rope and landed back in their plane. The manager was curious.

"So, is it true?"

"Yep..." the two groaned. Jewels seemed to be taking it easier than Jenny, who had crossed arms and a stamping foot. However, she was thinking more about who the heck she would find for her. Back at the Brawlers' plane, all of them were playing Multi Sorry.

"Come on, come on! Gimme a six! ...Booyah! Yeah baby!" Masquerade shouted. He was now in the lead, next to Dan. Even the Bakugan were playing, rolling themselves on the spaces, so it was a long game. Masquerade's character piece was now one space ahead of Dan, who had four of his five pieces in Home. Masquerade also had four, and now one of his pieces, Hydranoid, was one step away from the Safety Zone. It was then Drago's turn. The Bakugan wanted to compete, instead of being pawns, so they counted as a mobile piece that could draw. That way, their luck was twice as good.

"Okay, Drago, here's your card," Dan said.

"Let's see. Move twelve." Drago started rolling. "Ten, eleven, twelve!" Drago then bumped into Preyas. "Ha! Take that, Preyas! You go back to Start!"

"Aw man!" Preyas waddled back to Start. Now, it was Runo's turn.

"Let's see. Yes! I got a Sorry!" She moved her second piece from Start, and hit Hydranoid. "You go back to Start again!" Hydranoid growled.

"Okay, my turn!" Zorano said.

"Okay, Zorano, here," Dammy said.

"Alright! Move 24!" Zorano rolled briskly to her space. "Now I'm one step away from the Safety Zone!"

"Not for long! It's my turn!" Marucho said. "Move 11, or change places. I'll swap my piece with you, Zorano. So you are now over here." Zorano grumbled and moved. Slowly, the game rotated, and all of them took their turns. Sonic came so close, but was trampled by Link.

"Alright! My turn again!" Dan said. "Please let it be a...yes! Seven!" Dan moved Drago to home. He had won! "Whoo-hoo! Number one in Bakugan and number one at Sorry! Man, am I awesome or what?" he gloated. Everyone groaned. They decided to play for second.

"Okay, my turn. I just need a six, and I can move you to Home, Hydranoid."

"I'm stoked!"

"Come on...yes! A six like I wanted!" Hydranoid went to Home. "That was fun!"

"Sure was!" Runo said, packing up the board game.

"You know, I'm still amazed at how lucky I am. You know, Masquerade, even though you're second at this, you have a long way to go before you catch up to me!" Dan said.

"Uh, you might want to check the rankings again, Dan." Dan, confused, checked the rankings, which he hadn't done in a while. Masquerade was 2nd!

"Wha...How!?"

"You mean you never noticed that I've beaten every one of your friends at nightly Brawls?" Dan looked around at the nodding group. He was dumbfounded! However, his thoughts were interrupted when Kato announced that they were at the Amazon Jungle.

"Thanks, Kato," Marucho said. The plane landed, and they went exploring. Runo was complaining about the humidity making her hair frizzy, which made everyone groan. Shun was using his medallion to create a blade of high speed wind that he could control, using it to cut through the dense jungle.

"Boy, these medallions can basically let us do anything with our element except turn it into something else!" Julie said. She loved looking at all the exotic creatures. Amy was going crazy with her digital camera, snapping picture after picture, constantly having to replace the batteries after every twenty animals she captured.

"Better be careful, Julie. This area is known to have the Goliath Spider," Shun teased.

"Eek! I don't want to see any more spiders!"

"Then you should count your blessings that you aren't me. I had to fight a spider that was literally 60 feet in diameter," Link explained. Julie vomited from fear at the sheer thought of a spider that huge. Link loved this, so he began telling everyone about the horrible creatures he had to face, such as Morpheel. Julie was getting more freaked out by the minute, until Billy gave Link an atomic wedgie to shut him up, then jumped onto a tree branch and hung him from his underwear. Everyone laughed at Link's unfortunate predicament. He was fidgeting, trying to release himself, when his weight caused the branch to tear the elastic, and he fell.

"Ooh, that had to hurt!" Mewtwo commented.

"Great, just great. Now I have to find a new pair of underwear since the elastic in the back is broken."

"Serves you right for scarin' my girl!" Billy said. Link mumbled something under his breath, walking back to the plane to get a change of clothes. Within five minutes, he returned. They continued walking once Link caught up with them.

"This place is huge! Are you sure you know where to go?" Pikachu asked.

"I think so. Let's see... according to this, it should be on the inside of a tree, 100 feet...thataway." The group carefully walked, not wanting to step in anything abnormal. Amy was so distracted, she stepped in bird crap.

"Eeeww! Yuck! I stepped in bird!" Amy shrieked, scraping it off. She washed her shoe off in a river, when a piranha bit the end. Amy quickly took a picture before it got away. She dried her shoe off, and then rejoined the others. There they were, at the spot where Sonic's Invincibility was. Sonic climbed into the tree, and busted the capsule. He now had the power-up. They then proceeded to walk some more, when Julie noticed that there was a small cliff, as if something was sinking into the jungle.

"Yeah, you're right; this does seem higher than the rest. Also, the ground is a lot firmer and less rich than the rest of the jungle," Speedy added.

"And look! All of the trees have banana bunches!" Kirby yelled. They decided to investigate, when they heard a dinosaur-like yell.

"What was that?!" Pikachu said in a scared voice.

"Is that a...dinosaur?!" Masquerade asked.

"Wait...I know that yell! It couldn't be!" Mario exclaimed. They ran to the source of the noise, when they saw a tree house on fire. There, they noticed a familiar face. "Donkey Kong!" Mario hollered. Indeed, it was! DK was there, along with Metal Sonic and Naga. Metal Sonic was blasting missiles at the tree house, when he stopped to notice them.

"Grah! Why do you always happen to show up when we are up to something?!" Metal Sonic growled.

"I was wondering why we never heard from you, Metal! I was beginning to think you two were cowards!" Sonic taunted.

"How dare you, you insolent vermin?!" Naga roared.

"So that's Metal Sonic..." Speedy said.

"So, I take it you are Sonic's brother, hm? Interesting. I think I shall enjoy destroying you both!" Metal said in his mechanical voice. Claws poked out from the angry hedgehog's gloved hands.

"You'll have to catch me first!" Metal shot lasers out of his hands, when peanuts came out of nowhere.

"Diddy!" DK exclaimed.

"Don't worry! I'm here to help!"

"Okay, but then you have to go to Smash World!"

"Got it!" He blasted more peanuts that jammed most of Metal Sonic's weapons, which caused them to explode.

"Gah! Stupid chimpanzee! I'll make you pay for that!" Metal Sonic growled. He blasted Diddy Kong into a portal to Smash World that instantly closed.

"Diddy! Grr! You'll get it now!" DK roared.

"Metal Sonic, use a couple of our Shadow Bakugan, and teach these punks a lesson. I prefer not to waste my time," Naga said.

"Yes, Master." He slowly went down to the ground, along with two Shadow Bakugan. Naga returned to normal size, and he held cards in his hand. Dan knew what he was thinking.

"So it's a Brawl you want, huh? You're on! Marth! DK! Mario! You guys are up this time!" Dan said.

"Alright!" Marth cheered.

"I'm not all that familiar, but I'll try!" DK explained. The three were in position.

"Gate Card, set!" Dan and Naga yelled.

"Marth! Your go!"

"Go, my Shadow Saurus!" They landed on Naga's card.

"New battle recognized. Marth registered as Aquos Bakugan at 550 Gs. Shadow Saurus at 700 Gs."

"That's a high base power! Let's see...Ability Card, activate! Dive Mirage!" Marth dived into the Gate Card, and started swimming toward his.

"Hold it! Darkus Mine!" A mine of dark energy dropped into the Gate Card.

"Dodge it, Marth!" Marth swam around it with incredible agility. He then got to the other.

"Crap! You won't escape that easily! Go, my Shadow Ratteloid!"

"New battle commenced. Shadow Ratteloid at 460 Gs."

"You do realize that you have nullified your own Gate Card, you insolent fool!" Metal pointed out.

"You're dumber than you look!" Dan teased.

"What did you say?!"

"You heard me, to walking tin can! Ability Card, activate! Ability Transfer! This has Marth reuse his ability to nullify your Gate Card from his own!"

"Dive Mirage effect transferred."

"Now, Gate Card, open! Trade Off!" Ratteloid was down.

"No! You pest! I'll put an end to your interference!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever! Mario, you're up this time!" Mario jumped onto the Gate Card.

"New battle commenced. Mario at 460 Gs."

"Now, let's do this!" Dan said. Mario used his Vanishing Cap, and became invisible.

"Where did he go? What trickery is this?!" Naga growled. This wasn't going well for him. 'Curse this! I don't know how to do this as a game!'

"It's-a no trickery, Naga!" Mario shouted.

"The vanishing cap basically works like Preyas' Blue Stealth, but on a grander scale. His Gs increase by 100!"

"Mario now at 560 Gs."

"Now, to use this! Ability Card, activate! F.L.U.D.D.! This prevents you from using any Ability Cards this round! Now to finally finish this! Pyrus and Aquos Gravitation!" Marth jumped to where Mario was. "Attack!" Marth used his Dolphin Strike, and Mario gave a solid punch. The second Shadow Bakugan was destroyed. They both threw down new Gate Cards.

"Alright, Metal Sonic, take it away!"

"Yes, Master!"

"This one's all mine, you guys!" DK said.

"Got it!" DK jumped on Naga's card, where Metal Sonic was.

"New battle recognized. Donkey Kong registered as Subterra Bakugan at 550 Gs. Metal Sonic registered as Ventus/Subterra Bakugan at 680 Gs."

"Let's do this!" Donkey Kong beat his chest and did his gorilla scream.

"Time to use an Assist Trophy to give you a boost! Item Card, activate! Assist Trophy!" The Assist Trophy popped out, and DK opened it. It was Ray Mk III!

"Ray Mk III enters battle. DK power increase of 200 Gs."

"You think that will work? I can copy abilities!"

"Metal Sonic power increase of 200 Gs."

"That's it! Head Butt!" DK gave a powerful head butt and paralyzed Metal. Then, he proceeded to use his Hand Slap, which broke the Gate Card. Then, he went ballistic, and did Giant punch after Giant Punch, lowering Metal Sonic's Gs as his was raised, then finally sent Metal Sonic flying. Naga growled as he retreated. They looked onward, to the day they would finally take the two down. Sonic then warped the part of DK's jungle into the sky, and the part of the Amazon it had replaced was returned.

"So, DK, I know you want to make sure your jungle is safe, but would you like to come with us? We could use another powerhouse," Dan said.

"If I get bananas when I want them, sure."

"Don't worry. We have a storage house full of bananas from your jungle. Kirby just hasn't found them yet," Dan whispered.

"Alright!" Meanwhile, Kirby was at the door to the storage.

"Hey, what's this button for?" Kirby said, reaching for it.

"Oh no!" they all screamed.

**DK has joined the Brawlers, Sonic has another power-up, and Naga and Metal Sonic have been delayed once again. Chapter 26 is sure to be as action packed as this one!**


	26. A Trip Across the Universe

"Kirbydon'tyouopenthat!!!!" Sonic warned. Kirby stepped away, and the gang relaxed. He wondered what was behind it, but he paid it no more attention. Dan was the one to change the subject.

"This is so cool! I can't believe how quickly we're proceeding!" Dan said. He was right. The gang came pretty far in a short amount of time. However, they still had a lot to do.

"True, but we still have a lot to do," Marth pointed out.

"Yeah, get all of our power ups," Sonic began.

"Save all of our worlds," Pikachu added.

"Get the Chaos Emeralds," Tails said.

"Place the cores back," Drago continued.

"Stop them from going overreactive," Mario added on.

"Then defeat Naga and Metal Sonic," Kirby finished.

"We can't stop the worlds from fusing together, but at least we can try to make it to where they don't become one world, but like, each of our worlds becomes like a continent of Earth," Mewtwo said. The others thought about that for a while.

"You know, that would be cool! If your worlds and Smash World became a huge continent on Earth, then you could hang out with us for as long as you like!" Marucho said. Even Shun was glad to think that. They had become such close friends since they met, each with a common goal. If anything had happened to them, well, Shun didn't even want to think about that. Alice could tell that a lot. To her, Shun was like an open book. She placed her hand on his head and patted it, which obliterated all of Shun's thoughts.

"So, where to next?" Komba asked.

"Space-a time!" Mario said. The others were a little curious as how to get there, but Mario had the idea planned out. "Shun, you had-a better have been practicing your abilities, because we-a need you to-a create a giant air bubble!"

"Oh! So that's how we can do it! Good plan, Mario!"

"It's-a nothing." Kato took them as high as they could go, then the group got inside a huge green air bubble of Shun's. "Dan! Fire a rocket!" Mario said.

"Huh? Oh! Pyrus! By the power of the Pyrus Guardian! Nova Rocket!" A huge flare burst out of Dan's hand with so much force that it knocked them into space. Although there was atmospheric pressure to keep them from exploding, zero-gravity was still in effect. They had fun floating around in the huge, green bubble of furious wind. They slowly drifted through the large, black, speckled vacuum.

"So, who's this girl again?" Kirby said. "I might know her, considering I travel the galaxies."

"We might know her as well," CF and Samus said.

"This girl's name is Rosalina. She travels around the universe on a house that is powered by a comet. She takes care of an alien race, known as the Luma. They kinda look like slightly chubby stars. Kinda cute creatures, actually."

"So, you think that she might know where they are?"

"Of course! She is pretty wise!"

"Great! Let's go!" Dan fired another Nova Rocket, which sent them soaring as fast as a comet. Pretty soon, they noticed a bright yellow light, surrounded by platforms with buildings on them. They could see a kitchen, a bedroom, a garage, a garden, an engine room, a library, a terrace, and a fountain. "Wow! That must be it! Come on, Shun, hurry!" The gang quickly approached the large place, and landed on the outer platform. The air bubble dissipated, and the gang safely landed. The first thing they noticed was that they could breathe. They were greeted by the friendly Luma and a woman in a green dress.

"Rosalina! Good to see ya!"

"Hello, Mario! It is great to see you again! How have you been?" Rosalina asked.

"Wow! I love that dress! It suits you perfectly!" Amy said. Sonic just rolled his eyes.

'Amy is such the fashion critic.' Amy giggled when she saw Sonic roll his eyes, and grabbed his hand, making his cheeks turn red again, but he was smiling. 'Oh, what the heck, what's wrong with liking style? She is a girl, after all.' Sonic gave her a kiss on the forehead, and she turned back to admiring Rosalina's sense of fashion. Roselina seemed to be interested in the group.

"So, what brings you here, Mario?"

"It's a long story, but I need to find a few of my power ups."

"I take it you need the Spin Luma and the Flying Star?"

"Yes!"

"Very well then, you may proceed." The gang walked around the huge house, admiring the architecture. When they got to the library, they found a storybook on a chair. Kirby, being the busybody he was, picked it up and read it. Apparently, there was a sad part in it, because Kirby was sniffling. At the end, though, he was smiling.

"Good story!" Kirby said, sniffling. The others were curious, so they read it.

"Hm. Interesting," Link said. The others actually enjoyed it, even though it was for the Lumas. They then proceeded to walk up to the higher levels. Soon, they found a pure red Luma beside a crystal with a star in it.

"Hey, Mario!"

"Hi!"

"Need this?"

"Uh huh."

"Okay!" The Luma pushed the star to Mario, and he broke it open. The star was placed in the box. Mario then walked to the edge, and stepped onto a glowing sphere, which sent him to a higher part of the factory. The entrance to the Garden world was there. The others followed, and they walked through. They suddenly found themselves on a green planet, where Mario was walking toward an orange Luma.

"Hi, Mario!"

"Hello there! How are you?"

"Great! So, what do you need?"

"I require your assistance."

"You need my launching ability? No problem!" The Luma became a strange contraption of two stars, one smaller, and one was a lot larger.

"Yes-a! I-a got the Sling Star!"

"The what?" Link asked.

"Allow me to-a show you." They warped back to the spaceship, and they went to find the two other ones. One was blue one called a Pull Star, and one was a green Launch Star, and another one was a smaller orange. Mario retrieved them, and then walked to the fountain area.

"What's here, Mario?"

"There are a few more power-ups here in outer space. They're my Bee Shroom, Life Shroom, and the Ice Flower. I can retrieve my Bee Shroom from the Terrace area." They all walked slowly to the fountain and stepped onto the portal. Once they were inside the Terrace Dome, they saw it was empty. "Okay, blue Luma, do your thing-a!" Mario threw the blue Luma, and it turned into a smaller version of the orange one. Mario then held out his hand, and it pulled him in. The smaller star was pulled back, and they figured out that it was a springboard. Mario then pointed in a certain direction.

"The Honeyhive Galaxy? Okay!" As soon as it had retrieved Mario, it launched him into the sky as he hollered.

"Yahoo!"

"That looks fun!" Dan hopped on, and the blue Luma increased his size to hold everyone. They all hopped on, and before they could say anything, the Luma blasted them to the galaxy. Then, it launched itself to Mario, who stuffed it back into his power-up box. When they landed, they saw huge flowers all around, and friendly, giant bees. Julie squealed as she ran up to one. The bee stopped flapping its wings, and it made strange, yet happy sounds as Julie pet it.

"Aw, so cute! Aren't you?" The bee lowered its head, tempting her to climb on. Once she was on its back, it flapped its huge wings, and it rose to the top of the hive. Pretty soon, the two came back. Julie had honey around her mouth. "You guys! You will not believe how trusting these bees are! They let me try their honey! It's delicious!" she said, licking what was left off of her face.

"Yep, they are trusting bees. Speaking of which..." Mario said. He turned and saw his Bee Shroom, grabbed it, then headed back to the others.

"That's the Bee Shroom, huh?" Sonic asked

"What's it do?" Link asked with interest. It was amazing how they had all these power ups.

"Watch!" Mario ate it, and be donned bee clothes, and wings. He was able to fly for a period of time before he'd return to normal.

"Cool!" Pikachu chirped. Mario's Bee Shroom went back into the box.

"Now where do we go to find this...Ice Flower?"

"I think it's called the Beach Bowl Galaxy. It's a wonderful little floating beach."

"Cool!" Amy said

"Well, look like it's time to go back," Link said. The blue Luma morphed and they all were launched back to Rosalina's house/observatory.

"Welcome back, Mario! Did you get all you needed?"

"Not yet, I still need the..." Mario pulled out his map, and quickly realized a few more power-ups in space were revealed. "I need the Ice Flower, the Spin Luma, and the Spring Shroom."

"I see. Well, before you go to find the Ice Flower, here is the Spin Luma, which allows you to form Spin Attacks on the ground. Secondly, would you mind introducing me to your friends there?" Mario scratched his head in slight embarrassment.

"Sure thing-a! These are my-a friends, Dan, Runo, Marucho, Julie, Shun, Alice, Chan-Lee, Julio, Klaus, Billy, Komba, Joe, Daisy, Shiori, Christopher, Dammy, Sara, and Masquerade!"

Rosalina's POV

As I looked at the group of humans, I noticed each of them were strikingly different.

The first one, Dan, kinda looked, well, wild and brave, like a leader. He even acted like that. He apparently loved red and yellow, since that's what he wore.

The second one, Runo, was obviously his crush. She seemed like a bit of a tomboy, but then again I wasn't totally accustomed to Earthly customs much anymore. The blue hair was very strange, especially since she wore white and yellow.

The third one, Marucho seemed to be one of the youngest. Kind of a wiz kid like person. I could tell Sara liked him. Blue seemed rather fitting for him.

Julie seemed very bubbly and hyper, but of course, weren't most teenage girls? She also seemed to idolize Dan in a way, but I could tell she like Billy more. My only question was sky she wore purple. Kinda...tacky.

Shun seemed rather quiet, but he was a lot more talkative when near Alice. He was also in purple, but he did have green buttons, so he was a reverse of the color of his sphere, which everyone had one or two of. He looked like a ninja, what with his hairstyle and all.

Speaking of which, Alice seemed somewhat shy and quiet, no matter who she was with. But I could tell she and Shun liked each other. I must say, spring green and yellow were fitting for her, but she had a black and purple sphere.

That Chan-Lee seemed very acrobatic, as if she was a ninja as well. I could tell she liked Joe, since she was holding his hand. She also had red and yellow.

Julio was slightly menacing, being as bulky as he was. He even talked tough, but I could tell he was a softy. What was with the white sleeveless shirt? Did he exercise every day, or was that some strange fashion?

Klaus seemed to dress rather fancily, so I could tell he was rich like Marucho. He seemed to like Daisy.

Billy seemed like a bit of a braggart, and he was the only one with headwear. Kind of the odd one out, but that was only my opinion.

Komba seemed to act really tough, and he looked like the kind of kid that loved to make comebacks.

Joe seemed rather intelligent, and he loved conversing with the others. He was a very friendly person.

Daisy was obviously Julie's older sister, and she was obviously talented. Don't ask me why I can tell these things, it's just a gift. But...who the heck wears plaid skirts anymore?

Shiori kept a watchful eye on Shun, so it seemed logical to guess she was his mother. She was very gentle and happy.

Christopher was the youngest, obviously. He seemed to look up to Alice like an older sister, as well as Marucho. Apparently, Alice had given them good advice and always listened to them.

Dammy seemed rather cheerful and bubbly, but she seemed rather resentful to the sphere on her right shoulder. Just what were those spheres, anyway? She wore black, but she didn't seem gothic or anything. I could tell she was deeply in love with Masquerade.

Sara seemed sorta shy, but tried to blend in with the others. I stared in amazement as I saw her envelope a Luma in a blue aura, and she moved it around. She had psychokinetic abilities. The Luma seemed to be having fun.

Finally, the last one. Masquerade seemed a bit mysterious, yet normal. He was the only one with long, spiked up hair. He just wore a white sweatshirt and navy sweatpants, which he felt comfortable in. I could tell he didn't always look like that, because I noticed strange imprints on his hands and lower arms, as if he wore strange gloves. The name was peculiar, but who am I to judge?

Normal POV

"And together, we're the world famous Bakugan Battle Brawlers!" Dan finished. Rosalina seemed a bit unsure of the name, but nodded anyway.

"And these are the smashers. I'm sure you will recognize them. They are Bowser, DK, Link, Ganondorf, Sonic, Captain Falcon, Samus, Pikachu, Mewtwo, Lucario, R.O.B., Kirby, Meta Knight, King Dedede, and Marth." Rosalina recognized all of them. She then turned her head to the other three.

"And they are?"

"Amy, Tails, and Speedy. Speedy here is Sonic's long lost brother, in case you are wondering."

"Well, it is a pleasure to meet you," Speedy. Speedy bowed to her. "My, you are quite the gentlemen."

"Speedy here was raised that way. He does that to every lady who greets us," Sonic pointed out.

"I see! Well, good luck on your search, Mario. All of the domes are open." Mario thanked her, and they headed off toward the kitchen dome.

"Why the heck are all these domes modeled after something?" Sonic asked.

"These domes remind her of home, that's why," Mario said.

"By the way, Mario, I noticed these strange little colored objects," Kirby said, holding it out. "What are they?"

"They're called Star Bits. They're the Lumas' food supply," he explained.

"Food?" Kirby sucked it up. "Mm! Tastes like...honey!" Kirby said.

"The Lumas eat a lot of these. For instance, you see the Luma by the Terrace?" The others turned to see it. It was pink, and it had lollipops. "That is called a Hungry Luma. They can open up bonus galaxies, like that one up there." They saw a spiral in the air. "That is that Luma's galaxy, the Sweet Sweet Galaxy."

"Ooh! I can only imagine what it looks like...ice cream cake, rocky road walls, candy floors...mm," Kirby dreamed.

"That's...exactly what it is!" Mario said, befuddled. Kirby was shocked that he got it right.

"So, just how many of these star Lumas are there?" Link asked.

"There is the Sling Star, the Pull Star, and there are two Launch Stars."

"Interesting. And you have them all, right?"

"Right. The Pull Star is what I use to select the galaxy, and the blue Launch Star is what I use to launch there." Mario had the Pull Star Luma pull him on so he could select the Beach Bowl Galaxy. Once selected, the Launch Star pulled him back, and the others climbed on. The blue Luma went back to Mario, and they were launched to the Beach Bowl Galaxy. The Launch Star was close behind, by using the reaction energy it had created. Once they landed, they were amazed at the sight. Alice loved the adorable blue and white penguins. She loved to see birds.

"Wow! You weren't kidding when you said this place was wonderful!" Chan-Lee said. She had a love for the ocean view.

"Hey, look! Giant coconuts!" Kirby and Sonic said.

"I guess we could take a bit of relaxation while we're here!" Mario said, being able to tell they would ask anyway. Cheering, they all split up. Link got into his Zora Tunic and went for an underwater swim. Sonic just lay on the shore, being totally afraid of water now. He wouldn't even put a foot in it after that one incident with the rockfall. Speedy understood, and he and Amy stayed with him. Shun was sleeping under one of the giant palm trees. Runo, Dan, Marucho, and Sara were on the giant swing. R.O.B. was practicing his moves, being slightly out of touch. Pikachu was his battling partner. Everyone had a good time, and the penguins loved the company. Mario was exploring the underwater caves. After about a relaxing half an hour, Mario had enough relaxing, and he went running up the top of the tree, and jumped back toward the cliffs, and he climbed up the cliff and went to the other side of the island. The others followed, and they were surprised to see the geysers of cold water. In the middle was a clear sculpture that looked like a Fire Flower.

"Is that..." Julio asked.

"Yep. The Ice Flower." Mario ran over and placed it in the box, when, as if on cue, the volcano started to rumble!

"Not good! It's going to erupt with superheated water!" Marucho yelled. Mario, being the man of action, grabbed the Ice flower and ate it, becoming Ice Mario. He was translucent blue, and he was sparkling like the Ice. He ran up the side of the volcano, with the others close behind. When they got to the top, they saw the water mix with the white lava, which was making the water bubble. Before Dan could say Mario was making a risky move, Mario jumped!

"Mario!" Dan yelled. He thought he was a goner, when he saw Mario on his feet, standing on an ice platform! "Wha....?" His question was answered when Mario started running, causing the water to cool to subzero temperatures, making it walkable. He ran around the super hot water, freezing it to allow it to become ice. Once it was finished, Marucho began channeling the ice out of the volcano. Mario jumped out just in time to return to normal. The lava settled almost immediately, and Julie used her Subterra powers to seal the hole where the water was seeping through.

"So, where to next?" Runo asked, slurping coconut milk through a straw.

"My guess is the Toy Time Galaxy. That's where the Spring Shroom is." They warped back to the observatory; then headed to the top to the Engine Room Dome.

"So this is where you go to go to the Toy Time Galaxy?" Dammy asked.

"I must say, you sure do have a knack for this galaxy travel," Sara complimented.

"I couldn't do that. Three worlds are enough. Mobius, Earth, and Smash World," Sonic said.

"Uh, have you forgotten about being inside a book?" Shahra asked.

"Oh, right. Speaking of which, I think my Flame Ring is there."

"It is. In Night Palace. Your Magic Hands power-up is located on Earth somewhere."

"And that's all that's left, I do believe. I don't need all of those minor skills."

"Indeed," Shahra responded.

"Speaking of Magic Hands, my Firebrand Gloves should be somewhere on Earth, along with the Starman, Fire Flower, Super Mushroom, Mini Mushroom, and Mega Mushroom."

"What are the Firebrand Gloves?" Samus asked.

"They're gloves that boost my fire abilities. I got them when I touched the Fire Orb on Oho Island. Luigi has the Thunderhand Gloves."

"Interesting. It's too bad I don't have other mystical items. I only have my Magic Armor, my Twilight Jewel, and the Master Sword," Link said, rather bummed. Ganondorf only mocked him, which earned him a right hook to the gut.

"Oof! Man, you have a hard right hook!" Ganondorf choked.

"Serves you right, Ganondork." How he hated that nickname.

"Shut up you little..."

"Don't you finish that sentence," Mario said. "Focus here." Mario threw the Pull Star, and the Launch Star launched them all to the Toy Time Galaxy.

"Wow! This sure is something!" Captain Falcon replied. They walked around, avoiding electrical barriers. Mario took care of the enemies, and they finally reached a grey mushroom with a spiral like top.

"Look! There it is!" Masquerade exclaimed. Mario ran over, grabbed the metal like mushroom, and placed it in his power-up box. He now had all of his power ups that were in space.

"Alright! Got them all!"

"But, you know, we don't have to go so quickly. Can't we stay for a while longer and explore a lot more of the galaxies?" Tails asked.

"Yeah! I'd like to check out the Loopdeswoop Galaxy!" Klaus pointed out.

"And I want to go to Sweet Sweet Galaxy!" Kirby said.

"Well...alright-a. But only because nothing on Earth is happening-a," Mario said. Of course, this was a once in a lifetime chance, to explore these reaches of outer space. That was what made him agree so quickly. They warped back, and they decided to explore a bit more.

"I'm going to go to the ice cream!" Kirby cheered. He ran over to the pink Luma, and it launched him to the galaxy. Klaus found the green one, then he was launched to the Triad Trial planet. From there, he was blasted from the green Launch Star to Loopdeswoop Galaxy. The others found galaxies that suited them. Sonic, like he said, wasn't much of a traveler. He and Speedy stuck around to explore the observatory, and they made quick friends with the Lumas. And so, the fun begins...

**All right! An adventure arc! Finally, I can focus on different galaxies, meaning more chapters to look forward to! Keep reading, people! And tell any friends of yours with fanfic accounts about the poll!**


	27. A Trip Across the Universe: Part 2

The smashers, Brawlers, Amy, and Tails were off exploring the galaxies. Everyone somehow found the perfect galaxy to explore.

Dan, Drago, and Apollonir found peace in Melty Molten Galaxy.

Runo, Tigrerra, and Lars Lion went to Rolling Gizmo Galaxy, since it was high in the sky, and it was bright.

Marucho and Preyas were interested in Loopdeloop Galaxy, since it was also water.

Julie and Gorem were interested in Dusty Dune Galaxy.

Shun and Skyress decided on the Gusty Garden Galaxy. That way, Shun could practice his wind powers.

Alice, Hydranoid, and Reaper went to Bubble Breeze, much to Hydranoid's dislikes. Alice wanted to go somewhere peaceful, though Hydranoid wanted to go to Deep Dark Galaxy.

Chan-Lee and Fortress seemed attracted to Freezeflame Galaxy.

Julio and Tentaclear chose Gold Leaf Galaxy.

Of course, Klaus and Sirenoid went to Loopdeswoop Galaxy.

Billy and Cycloid eagerly chose Sand Spiral Galaxy.

Komba and Harpus went to Bubble Blast Galaxy, since it had the name "Blast" in it, after all.

Masquerade and Exedra seemed to like the Dreadnought Galaxy, since it was a humongous spaceship.

Shiori and Oberus were going to Buoy Base Galaxy.

Dammy and Zorano went to Matter Splatter Galaxy. They were sure it would be fun.

Sara and Solero went back to Toy Time Galaxy.

Christopher, Juggernoid, and Frosch went to the Gateway Galaxy, since it was a small, yet eventful galaxy.

Joe and Wayvern went to Honeyclimb Galaxy.

Daisy and Clayf wanted to see Snow Cap Galaxy.

Mario went to Battlerock Galaxy, since it was just his style of difficulty.

Bowser decided on Ghostly Galaxy, to show his superiority to the Boos.

DK went to the Good Egg Galaxy, so that he could find giant eggs to eat.

Link went to Bonefin Galaxy. He wanted to face off with Kingfin.

Ganondorf went to Deep Dark Galaxy. He wanted to feed off of the power.

Kirby, of course, went to Sweet Sweet Galaxy.

Meta Knight chose Boo's Boneyard Galaxy.

King Dedede wanted to go to Drip Drop Galaxy.

Captain Falcon went to see Space Junk Galaxy.

Samus decided on Sling Pod Galaxy.

R.O.B. wished to go to Hurry-Scurry Galaxy.

Marth traveled to Rolling Green Galaxy.

Pikachu went back to Honeyhive Galaxy.

Mewtwo and Lucario decided on Grand Finale Galaxy, since Flipswitch Galaxy was only one planet of pressure switches. What fun would that be?

Tails was really excited to see Sea Slide Galaxy.

Amy went back to Beach Bowl Galaxy.

_Okay, that takes care of who went where, now onto the actual part of the chapter._

"You guys take care!" Sonic and Speedy said, waving as the others went to their destinations. As soon as they had left, Sonic felt somewhat worried. What would happen to his friends? Would they be okay?

"Don't worry, little brother. I'm sure they'll be fine. They know how to take care of themselves. After all, they are the smashers and the Brawlers! Plus, they have their Bakugan." Rosalina caught wind of this and went over to them.

"It's not the smashers and Brawlers that I'm worried about. It's Tails and Amy. Tails only has one fighting tool without the Tornado, and that is his pair of tails. And Amy...well, her hotheaded attitude could put her in danger."

"Actually, where they went, they aren't in danger. Beach Bowl and Sea Slide don't have enemies, I'm sure."

"Phew. That's a relief."

"Pardon me, but I couldn't help but overhear. What are these...Bakugan you speak of?" Rosalina interrupted.

"The Bakugan are the spheres on the Brawlers' shoulders. They're creatures from another universe called Vestroia. It's this amazing place filled with six elements. I tell ya, it's cool!" Sonic explained.

"Please, do tell!" Rosalina sat down as Sonic began to explain everything the Brawlers had told him. Meanwhile...

**Melty Molten Galaxy**

Once Dan, Drago, and Apollonir landed on the galaxy, they were impressed with the red and brown scenery.

"This place is off the hook!" Dan said in awe.

"I must say, this place is even better than Pyrus!" Drago said. He and Apollonir returned to normal and began their exploring. As he flew, Dan carefully walked on the ground.

"Mini volcanoes! Freaky!" Dan carefully stepped around, collecting the Star Bits that were abound.

"Daniel! Be careful of the lava!" Drago warned.

"Drago, you are aware of my new powers, aren't you?"

"Yes, but..." Before he could finish, Dan dove into the lava! "Daniel!" Drago swooped down, then Dan jumped out like a dolphin.

"Totally cool! It's just like swimming in a giant hot tub!" Dan said, soaring through the air. He then dove back in, then surfaced. It was like a gel, so he could easily tread the lava. He then swam at the surface as if it was water.

"You are pretty lucky, Dan." Dan lifted his head and got an idea.

"Ha! Pyrus! By the power of the Pyrus Guardian! Lava Vortex!" Suddenly, the Lava formed a whirlpool that sucked in all of the Star Bits that were in it. He swam around and grabbed them. After grabbing them all, he got out and wiped the rest off. He then gathered some in his hand, and tossed it around like a ball. He hopped on Drago to take off to the next section. They gathered every Star Bit they could find as they made their way to the large volcano. Once they landed on a platform near it, Dan hopped around until he found a small Sling Star. He hopped in, and then it launched him to an orange Launch Star. After charging it, he was sent flying to another planet. After running around, Drago joined him.

"Would you slow down?!" Drago groaned.

"Gotta catch me first!" Dan said, running around the maze like planet.

"You still act like you did when you were 12! Reckless and stupid!"

"What's got you so worked up?" Dan said as he threw a red lava ball at the huge dragon. Drago only snarled as they explored. However, within about five minutes, Drago began to enjoy himself, flying around in the lava filled galaxy.

"This feels just like home..." Drago said calmly.

"See? What did tell ya? Come on!" Apollonir was just relaxing on the top of the large volcano on top.

"You two go ahead and explore some more. I'm too old for this," Apollonir stated.

**Rolling Gizmo Galaxy**

Runo, Tigrerra, and Lars Lion loved the greenery that was around them. The strange platforms that were around answered Runo's mental question as to why it was called the Rolling Gizmo Galaxy.

"How do we proceed along this galaxy?" Tigrerra asked.

"Yes, this place does seem rather perplexing," Lars Lion added

"My guess is that ball. That probably puts the Rolling part in the name." Runo hopped on. "It's a giant balancing ball! And this...must be some gigantic golf course!" Tigrerra nodded, and she returned to normal size. She carefully pushed the ball to avoid the traps. Even though Tigrerra had to be careful to prevent her master from falling, the two enjoyed the crisp breezes and bright sunlight. Runo carefully guided Tigrerra to roll her toward the Star Bits. Once they were on one of the other platforms, they saw the whole galaxy. There, Lars Lion went to normal and flied around.

"Looks like your guess was correct! It is a huge golf course!"

"Okay, Tig. I got it from here." Runo carefully rolled the ball around while Tigrerra hopped around the galaxy. Running like that made her feel like a kitten again. Runo somehow managed to hop off, and she used her super strength to send the ball over to Tigrerra. She then started playing around with it like it was a ball of yarn. "Still a kitten at heart. How cute!"

"This place is great! I'm glad we came here, Runo."

"Yeah! The weather's perfect, there's a lot to explore, and this place is so lush! Well, we should try and win this golf course, huh?"

"Agreed." Runo hopped back onto the ball and rolled along the narrow passageways and platforms. Tigrerra jumped from large platform to large platform, ready to catch the ball when necessary. After about five minutes, they landed it in the pocket.

"Oh yeah! Hole in one!" Runo cheered. The three cheered, then relaxed some more. Lars Lion felt it satisfying to just fly around and examine all of the contraptions they had overcome.

**Loopdeloop Galaxy**

"Wow! Does that place look cool or what, Preyas?!" Marucho asked excitedly. Preyas returned to normal, and Marucho held on to the lizard's neck.

"Woohoo! Cannonball!" Preyas yelled as they made splashdown.

"AAH!" They splashed the water so high that it went over the sides. They surfaced and got on an island to see another penguin.

"Hello there, I'm the coach! Are you here to take part in a manta surfing lesson, young man?" the penguin asked. Marucho was a bit confused when the penguin said that.

"Excuse me?"

"Oh, so you don't know? Let me explain." He pointed to a blue manta. "These friendly mantas are able to be ridden. Trust me. They won't hurt anyone. You can stand on them, and they'll carry you around. Basically, it's like riding on a live surfboard."

"That does sound like fun? Sure! I'll give it a shot!"

"Aw man, Marucho, how come you get to do all this cool stuff?"

"You can shrink to your sphere form if you want."

"Oh yeah! Right!" Preyas returned to his sphere form, and jumped on Marucho's shoulder. Marucho jumped on, and the friendly manta ray carried him around. Marucho soon realized that the manta could read his thoughts, and it knew in what direction to move.

"This is awesome! The manta moves in whatever direction I'm thinking of! If only it could go faster...whoa!" On cue, the manta went faster than it had before. Marucho had to be very careful to avoid falling to his demise. Suddenly, they approached a sharp turn!

"Oh no. Not cool. Not cool!" Preyas yelled. They lost control, and began to slide off the edge! The penguin was in a rush.

"Guess the time is good as any to give my powers another whirl! Aquos!" The symbol appeared on his hand on time. "By the power of the Aquos Guardian! Water Wall!" Water increased from the edge, following the curve.

"It's not gonna work!"

"Freeze Frame!" The water instantly froze, and the penguin stopped in shock.

"That human...can control water and ice?"

"Marucho, why didn't you try that at Beach Bowl Galaxy?"

"Cooling a larger area of water that quickly would've caused the whole volcano to crumble, making the lava incinerate the whole section of the galaxy!"

"Good point."

"And he's smart, too," the penguin added. The manta slid along the ice, then got back into position on the water. Taking their time this time, they completed the course.

"So that's why it's called Loopdeloop Galaxy. It's made from loops of water. Do you think Loopdeswoop is just like it?" Preyas asked.

"Since it's a Trial Galaxy, it's probably a lot bigger. Well, now that we've completed a whole lap, what do you say we just play around?"

"Good idea!" Marucho used his still activated power to move the ice into a ladder, and then he channeled the water into a swirling slide. "Awesome, Marucho! I love water slides!" Preyas returned to normal, and they climbed up to the top.

"Geronibunga!" they yelled together. They then started sliding down the large slide, actually inside the tunnel of water. Since he was the Aquos Guardian, he was able to breathe underwater. It was a grand time.

**Dusty Dune Galaxy**

"Wow! This place is...something!" Julie said. It seemed rather dreary, it being an empty desert and all, but it seemed somewhat pleasant in a way. Gorem was really excited, of course.

"This place is amazing! Pyramids, sandstone, quicksand...this is better than Subterra space!" Gorem cheered. The two landed, and Gorem returned to normal. Soon, they began to explore the desert, planet by planet.

"Hmm. I wonder. Do you think my Subterra powers would allow me to walk on quicksand, Gorem?"

"It is a strong possibility," Gorem said, picking up Star Bits. Julie started moving around large sandstone blocks, then decided to give it a try. Carefully, she stepped onto the quicksand.

"Whoa! It's like walking on solid ground!" Julie said, walking on it. She even ran and jumped on it. It was the time of her life.

"Amazing! Your powers still continue to impress me, Julie."

"Aw, thanks, Gorem." Julie continued to be impressed herself. She even got to befriend the strange creatures there. She always had a knack for that. Soon, they came upon a double sided planet.

"I wonder what lies here..."

"Look! A staircase stuck in the ground on one side, and a switch on the other!" Julie exclaimed. Gorem realized what she meant, and he pressed the giant switch. Julie ran to the other side, across the quicksand. She realized that the switch had worked! She jumped on the bricks, and Gorem had jumped into the Launch Star that had appeared. Julie got on his shoulder, and they were sent flying into what appeared to be a glass ant farm. Once she got inside, she heard rumbling.

"Julie! Look out! It's a trap!" Gorem yelled. It was too late. Sand began to pour out from a tunnel, and it crept toward her.

"Not good! Okay! Time to try a new move! Subterra! By the power of the Subterra Guardian! Sand Wave!" The sand began to form a wave that made the sand collapse on itself like a trench, creating a hard, thick wall of sand. She then dug a tunnel that led her out of it. "Phew! That was close!"

"Indeed. We should find a place less dangerous, such as...that planet!" Gorem said. Julie created a walkway, and they walked to the next planet, which was full of solid ground and Star Bits. Gorem was pounding the ground, trying to build his strength.

"I'm glad we chose this galaxy! It's a blast!"

"Yes. I am also glad."

**Gusty Garden Galaxy**

"Well, Skyress, what do you think of this place?" Shun asked, riding the large, green phoenix.

"I must say, this is a large galaxy! And it sure is windy! I like this place!" Skyress commented. They landed on the large, grassy, tree-filled area. Shun was totally amazed at the scenery, but then focused on his goal. He gathered some wind, and started practicing move after move, any that he could think of. Skyress was flying around the large tree nearby. After about ten minutes of practicing, he started to walk around the area.

"Hm, this place seems rather peaceful, but I wonder. How can we go to any of the other planets?" Shun asked himself. He then happened to notice a Launch Star, high up in the tree. "How can I get up there?" He then noticed a zip line on the tree, and he walked over to it. He grabbed a hold, and it started to zip up around the large tree.

"Shun! Be careful!" Skyress said. Shun planted his feet on the tree for grip, and kept holding on to the tree. Everything was going great until halfway up, when the zip-line snapped!

"Uh oh! Not good!" Being a quick thinker, he tried to run horizontally along the tree, and it worked! "This is incredible! I can run on vertical areas!" Skyress let out a sigh of relief, and then saw a bubble going around the tree. She knocked it up to Shun, who hopped inside as it carried him to the platform near the Launch Star. He climbed on, and he got to the Launch Star. He got in, and he noticed the trajectory was toward a staircase of giant apples. It launched him, and Skyress flew as fast as Shun was going. Once on the apples, he noticed they were too far to jump on.

"How do you suppose you can get to the next apple quickly, Shun? After all, it seems you have exhausted your wind powers by running on the tree."

"I think you're right...wait! Look! A giant Wiggler! I'll bet we can use that to traverse!" Like he thought, it went through the holes in the apples. Once its head was inside the apple he was on, he began to run along it, going from apple to apple. Once on the last one, he got in the Sling Star that sent him to a cubic garden.

"This must be the garden!" Skyress said. She was right. The grassy cube was filled with flowers, and it had guides that also acted a rails. It was very windy there. He was about to find the next one, when four rabbits appeared.

"Ha ha! Catch us if you can!" one of them said. The four took off, leaving Shun bemused. However, he didn't feel like playing around, and just sat on a rock. He picked up a leaf and began to play a melody. The rabbits soon realized he wasn't chasing them, and decided to go back and watch him play the song on the leaf. They loved it. They even thumped on the ground in tune with the song. Soon, a simple leaf created an orchestra of sound, which seemed to invigorate Skyress. Even Shun seemed to enjoy the mixed sounds. After five minutes, Shun took a bow to all of the creatures who were clapping. Then, they decided to explore some more. The rabbits turned back into Lumas, and they formed a Launch Star that sent the two to yet another planet.

"I have to say, that was quite relaxing," Shun said.

"You sure can create a lot of enjoyment with a leaf." Shun nodded, and they explored the rest of the galaxy.

**Bubble Breeze Galaxy**

"What the...?" Alice asked. As they headed for Bubble Breeze Galaxy, she noticed the purple water below. Hydranoid and Reaper liked it. It was sorta spooky in a way.

"Looks like you chose a somewhat spooky place, anyway, Alice!" Hydranoid mocked. Alice gave his third head a good slap, which knocked it into the other ones. "Youch!" Reaper laughed at Hydranoid's predicament, which earned him a triple blast from Hydranoid. Once they landed, Alice went over to the purple water.

"What is this stuff?" She then noticed a sign nearby, and read it. "Great. Just great. I choose a galaxy that seems peaceful, and it turns out that this water is poisonous!"

"I like it. It's dark and spooky!" Reaper commented.

"Duh. YOU would," Alice groaned. "Man, I wish this water was clean and safe..." As soon as she said that, wind started blowing from the north, and a light blue blur appeared. She managed to use her video camera to record everything. The water started getting clearer as the wind blew. It finished in just two minutes. After it finished, Alice noticed that the water was crystal clear! Hydranoid and Reaper moaned.

"Aw, man!" they said glumly. Alice just stared in awe.

'What was that?' she thought. "Well, now that the water's safe, I'm going to go for a swim!" She ran to another island. In just a minute, she splashed into the river. Hydranoid and Reaper were a little bored, but decided to look around the small galaxy. After all, it was still dark and gloomy. After a few minutes, Hydranoid and Reaper began to realize it wasn't that bad. Alice went back to the platform they landed on. She soon noticed a bubble that she hadn't before. She got in, and she realized that she could use the floating fan to move around where she wanted! It was like a maze, but she managed to float her way through spikes, rocky walls, and other obstacles. It was a blast after all.

"This is a great galaxy!" Hydranoid said, knocking large mountains around. Reaper was slicing the mountains into breakable rock disks.

"Thanks for bringing us here, Alice!" Reaper said.

"No problem!" she said from inside the bubble.

**Freezeflame Galaxy**

"Fortress, look!" Chan-Lee said as they headed for an icy planet. She noticed that there were three planets that led to different places. The icy one led to the ice mountain nearby. The lava-like one led to the core of the galaxy. The final one, which was a fire and ice, led to a strange temple of both elements. That seemed to go to a volcano that had a hint of ice. It was fiery, yet cool. They decided to try the ice planet first. Once they landed, Fortress, in his ball form, slid and rolled around on the thick ice. A penguin nearby challenged Chan-Lee to catch him. His fun was cut short, however, when Fortress returned to normal size and blocked his path.

"Gotcha!" Fortress said. Chan-Lee tagged the penguin. It admitted defeat, and it opened the Launch Star. The two hopped in. They were launched to the icy mountain in just a few seconds. However, instead of landing on the mountain, they landed on a slide of ice. Of course, it was fun to go really fast on the cold ice. It was amazing how sturdy it was, being able to support a huge Bakugan. The got off and began to explore the mountain. Chan-Lee noticed that there were many Star Bits on the mountain. She had Fortress lift her to all of the cracks and crevices so that she could grab all of them. After that, they climbed and walked to the top. She carefully traversed the sinking and rising platforms, and jumped across the frozen pipelines to the middle of the mountain, where a huge creature was.

"Grrrah! I am Baron Brr! Who dares trespass my mountain?!" the ice-spitting creature asked. It stared at her with a hateful gaze. Chan-Lee matched it, when made it shiver a little from fear.

"You think you're so scary! Not quite! Ability Card, activate! Face of Rage!" Fortress moved his head and showed a scary face. Baron Brr was sent screaming, which made Chan-Lee laugh. "He acted so tough, but he was just a scaredy-cat."

"He sure was! Ha ha!" They then climbed up to the top of the mountain, which was the highest point in the galaxy. "I'm the king of the galaxy and you're not!" he mocked. Chan-Lee smirked and jumped on top of the four faced creature.

"Looks like you're below me now!" Chan-Lee teased. Fortress grumbled. "Okay, let's head to the red planet to see the core!"

"Alright!" Fortress cheered. They ran back up the slide and jumped to the red planet. They jumped into the Launch Star. Pretty soon, they were blasted to the blistering hot core of Freezeflame Galaxy. They had to be careful; otherwise they would've been fried to a crisp. Jumping from platform to platform and avoiding giant Bullet Bills were just a few of the obstacles they had to face. Even though it was a little difficult, they managed to make it through to the lava-filled core. Once they got there, they had to use the ice maker nearby to cool the lava. The then made their way to the center.

"What's next?" Chan-Lee asked.

"Why don't we go to the hot and cold area?"

"Okay!" The two used the nearby Launch Star to travel to the lava and ice planet, where they made their way through lava bubbles to the Launch Star.

"Allow me, Chan-Lee." The two got in and were launched to a strange, double-sided planet. They noticed one side had lava, the other, ice and super cold water. They had to go through both sides to unlock the way to the hot and cold core-like center. They reached their destination, and relaxed.

"You know, this place is weird, but it's a lot of fun!"

"It sure is."

**Okay, that's one section covered, possibly four more to go. I sure hope you like the next chapters!**


	28. A Trip Across the Universe: Part 3

**Gold Leaf Galaxy**

"Hey, Tentaclear, what do you suppose this Gold Leaf Galaxy is like?"

"We...will...be...there...soon...enough. So...shut...up!" Tentaclear moaned.

"Gee, since when did you get an attitude?"

"I...always...have. I...just...could...never...speak...it."

"Oh, right. Well, why don't you shut up before I damage those three eyes of yours?"

"Real...nice. Not!" Julio was about to say something back, but they landed on the first planet.

"Whoa! This place is, weird!" Indeed, it was. It was full of strange cliffs and rock formations, and huge trees with gold leaves. There were some puddles of honey as well, but no hives or bees. There were, however, strange creatures that looked like spheres with beaks and legs.

"I...believe...those...are...Cataquacks."

"So, this place is a Cataquackastrophe!" Julio joked. Tentaclear only growled in his robotic voice. However, it was slowly getting better. Pretty soon, he'd be able to talk without pausing, but still have his robotic voice. "So, where should we start first?"

"Up...there...maybe?"

"Good idea!" Julio had the Cataquack to spring up to a cliff. From there, he used a Launch Star to travel to another planet. This one was actually just a big tree, dripping with honey. The gold leaves provided excellent scenery. Julio then noticed that there were wooden walkways on the last planet, but really high. This gave Julio an idea. He climbed onto Tentaclear, and they flew up to the walkways. They noticed strange beetles around, and they were pretty nasty. Julio had to jump over them to avoid getting knocked off.

"Gee. What's...their...problem?"

"Who knows? Come on, let's go!" Julio motioned. They quickly jumped over the beetles and made their way toward a giant tree.

"Amazing! This...tree...is...huge!"

"I know!" Julio grunted, lifting a huge Cataquack like a weight.

"Ugh."

"Well, I don't know about you, but I like this place."

"It...would...be...better...without...you...here."

"Ha ha." Even though Tentaclear didn't fully enjoy Julio's company, he wouldn't be where he was without him. He just lay back and began to soak up the golden rays.

**Loopdeswoop Galaxy**

"Whoa! What is this place? It's like...the water is suspended and channeled in midair!" Sirenoid exclaimed, Klaus on her back.

"So this is Loopdeswoop Galaxy, huh?" Klaus asked. Once they landed, it seemed Sirenoid was right. The course's ground was just water, with one shore. Strange arches and tunnels were on it, as if it was a racetrack.

"Hey, Klaus, what does that sign there say?"

"It says, 'Manta Surfing Test Today! Beat the time, and win a golden trophy!' Manta surfing? How the heck do you do that?" A penguin that appeared out of nowhere answered his question.

"To manta surf, all you do is stand on the manta, and it will turn by your thoughts. It's pretty cool!"

"So, this is like a racetrack. Interesting. Well, since it is, how about something else?" Sirenoid asked.

"Hm? What is it, strange mermaid?" the penguin asked. Sirenoid whispered something to Klaus, which made him smirk.

"Klaus and I challenge you to a race. You and that manta versus us two." The penguin smirked at this.

'It's worth a shot!' "Very well, I accept your challenge!" Sirenoid leaped over the small, sandy island and into the water, beside the manta. The penguin climbed aboard the friendly manta, and Klaus was sitting on Sirenoid.

'This'll be a cinch. Sirenoid is the fastest swimmer I know. That manta is toast!'

"Ready...set..." Seconds ticked. "Go!" Sirenoid yelled. They took off. It seemed that manta had the upper hand, having all the experience in racing. However, Klaus wasn't giving up so easily.

"Time to put the odds in our favor! Ability Card, activate! Forcing Waves!" Suddenly, a huge wave appeared behind Sirenoid, and it picked the duo up. It was carrying them farther than the smaller wave that was boosting the penguin and manta.

"So, you can use cards to boost your mermaid's speed? Interesting! Well, I can use tricks as well!" A speed boost ring was in the air, and the manta jumped through it, catching up to the two.

"Time to use another one! Gate Card, set!" Suddenly, a blue rectangle appeared and blended into the water. "Ability Card, activate! Anthemusa!" Once activated, the card began to pull the penguin and manta back, stalling them. They somehow managed to fight it, after about, twenty seconds, and broke free a little too late. They caught up, but Sirenoid finished a few seconds before, and they even broke the speed record!

"Incredible! Not only did you win, but you broke the time! You deserve a huge reward!" The penguin gave Klaus a huge trophy and congratulated him.

"Thank you."

**Sand Spiral Galaxy**

"Check it out! It's some kind of giant quicksand area!" Billy exclaimed.

"Yeah! This is gonna rock!" his Ultimate Cycloid cheered. They landed near a Sling Star, but that led to a small, strange tunnel that was way too small for Cycloid, and Billy couldn't use the two mushrooms nearby to get through, so they headed for the desert area. Cycloid felt so relaxed that he started making a sand angel.

"Usually, we only do that with snow, Cycloid."

"I know; it just feels so good to be in soft sand..." Cycloid noted, relaxing in the warm sand. Billy got an idea. He started to get bucket after bucket of sand, and he piled it on top of Cycloid. After about twenty minutes, Cycloid awoke to hear a laughing Billy.

"Ha ha! If only Julie was here to see this!"

"See what, boss? Huh?!" Cycloid noticed that he was buried. "Ha! You sneaky twerp! You got me!" Cycloid squirmed out and playfully threw a sand ball at Billy, hitting him square between the eyes.

"Oof! Ouch!" Billy whined.

"Sorry, boss! I didn't mean to hurt ya!" Cycloid apologized, running over. Billy got up.

"It's okay. Just unexpected, that's all." Billy got up and placed a wet rag he had on his throbbing sore spot, while Cycloid looked rather glum. The swelling went down, and he walked over to his friendly Bakugan. "Hey, you wanna go sand sledding?"

"Sure thing!" The two got into a large boat and began sliding down a large dune.

"Yahoo!" Billy screamed. "This is a blast!"

"I can agree to that!" Once they stopped, they had created a path in the sand dune.

"That was awesome!"

"Uh huh!" Cycloid said, falling back into the warm sand. Billy did the same.

**Bubble Blast Galaxy**

"So this is Bubble Blast Galaxy? Where's the bubble?" Harpus asked.

"Great, Harpus! You wound us up in some electric barrier place!" Komba snapped.

"I'm a bad Bakugan!" Harpus mocked. She still had the same temperament. Snobbish and smart mouthing. Once they landed, Komba noticed a bubble.

"Hey, that's it!" Komba jumped inside, and a thought-controlled fan appeared. Komba was able to control it, and he went nuts! He was zigzagging through the area like an ADD stricken five year old. Of course, this excited Harpus. She went around flying, being sure to keep Komba away from the barriers. The last thing she wanted to for her master to get fried.

"Careful, Komba! You may be a French fry, but I don't want to have a burnt one!"

"Stop calling me short, Harpus!"

"Sorry." Komba smiled. He couldn't stay mad at his Guardian Bakugan. She meant well, even though she acted spoiled as him.

"It's okay." Komba slowed down and took in the view below. "This view's awesome! This IS a cool galaxy!"

"I knew it would be! It is a 'blast' after all!"

"Ha ha, good one," Komba said sarcastically. The two were happily playing, but Harpus could tell Komba was thinking about something. This was her opportunity to ask.

"Hey, Komba. I was wondering. I could tell you were thinking about someone. Who was it?" Komba turned deep red at that statement.

"I...I wasn't...umm...."

"Komba....?" she pestered.

"Well, that Jewels girl, okay? That's who I was thinking about."

"You mean that girl with the bad, blue haircut?"

"It's not bad!"

"Ooh! You got a crush on her!"

"No! For some reason, she slipped into my mind. Basically about how mad she got at Marucho for being with Sara," Komba explained truthfully. He then muttered something, but Harpus heard it. "I wonder...are all girls so rash?" he muttered to himself.

"Excuse me?!" Harpus yelled, revealing a frying pan.

"Nothing!" Harpus smirked at her master, gently tapping it against her hand. "Um, Harpus? Shouldn't you be using that for eggs?" Komba asked with noticeable fear. Once over the large platform where they could land, Harpus spoke.

"Oh, I will. A BIG egg...heh heh." She lifted the frying pan up.

"Curse this stupid egg-shaped noggin!" BONG!!! Komba had a huge goose egg on the top of his head, going above his curly hair.

"Hey, Komba, that reminds me. Why the heck do you no longer wear that green hat of yours?"

"Because why would I want to hide this great, black hair?" Harpus grumbled.

'He's such a narcissist.'

"I am not!"

"How'd you know what I was thinking?!" Harpus asked, trembling.

"I know you." Komba smirked slyly.

"Whatever. Ooh! My turn!" She shoved Komba out of the bubble and got inside. Using her wind powers, she flew around, using her nail arrows to damage the Bullet Bills. Once back, the two similar partners just decided to lie down and enjoy the atmosphere.

**Dreadnought Galaxy**

"Wow! This place is...awesome!" Masquerade gasped. Even Exedra's excitement (wow, alliteration) was noticeable.

"Indeed! This whole galaxy really is a gigantic spaceship referred to as the Dreadnought!" Exedra said. Once they landed, they realized it was in major disrepair, which was why it was here instead of on a large planet. It was doubtful that it was being built here in the middle of nowhere.

"I wonder what happened to this ship." Masquerade was examining it.

"Masquerade, look! Down there!" Masquerade looked down and gaped. The engines were eaten clean off by strange alien beings.

"So that's it, huh?" Masquerade decided to give his Darkus powers a whirl. "Darkus!" The symbol appeared on his hand. "By the power of the Darkus Guardian! Shadow Slash!" He gathered the darkness and crated a blade that could travel through shadow covered objects. It quickly appeared at the engines, and Masquerade moved his arm in a slashing motion, destroying the strange, metal aliens, one by one.

"Whoa. Freaky."

"So I can do that? Sweet!" After taking care of any and all enemies on the ship by using his Shadow Slash move, he and Exedra formed a plan. They would find all of the scrap metal and rebuild the huge spaceship. Having nine heads made it easy for the Ultimate Hydranoid to move about and grab multiple sheets at once. Using the steel beams provided a color coded instruction-booklet like idea. They sure had a lot of fun. Masquerade managed to find a nearby welder, and Exedra was using superheated blast from the mouth on his stomach. When they were done, using a few buckets of paint they had found on a platform nearby, they began to paint the inside of the ship a bright gray. They then used the black to paint the beams. It seemed like a basic ship hull, but they discovered a box that was filled with devices. Very carefully, they set the electric chargers and devices, and once in place, set the inside metal plates. Masquerade pressed the on button, and the Dreadnought was back in business!

"This is rather enjoyable!" Exedra exclaimed. Masquerade was also having fun. Eventually, the ship was operational, and the two went traveling around. They returned, and Masquerade threw up a darkness cloak to hide the ship from further alien attacks. They then removed all of the platforms to prevent other intruders from finding it if they saw through the cloak. Riding Exedra, Masquerade felt really glad that they did something so helpful. Then, something crossed his mind that he had been meaning to tell Exedra for a while.

"Hey, Exedra?"

"Yes?"

"I wanted to say thank-you."

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"You know, about brining me back and making me good and everything..." Masquerade said. Although he knew it would intensify his regret for his past doings, he had to say it.

"I knew you were thinking that. You're welcome. Somehow, I knew that bringing you back was a good idea. Just, one question."

"What is it, Exedra?"

"I noticed that your suitcase that you have has your old outfit inside, including your repaired mask. Why?" Thinking about that made Masquerade's stomach pang with guilt.

"That's...a question even I don't know the answer to. For some reason, I just...did..." Masquerade suddenly felt confused. Would've thought that one simple thing could cause so much pain? It was as if a part of him was still connected to how he was five years ago. But then again, Masquerade wasn't himself then, either. Five years ago, he was under control by Naga, who he wanted revenge against so badly. He knew he did turn good after his battle with Dan, but it didn't make up for all of the bad things he did. Exedra wrapped a small, arm-like tentacle around the confused boy, comforting him. "I have no idea... I wanted to just burn that outfit since it reminds me of what I was like five years ago, but...I couldn't..."

"Hey, hey, hey. Take it easy, Master. You're letting this regret get to you. Sure, it may have been what you wore when you were evil, and before you met Dammy, but did it make you evil?"

"Well...no, but..."

"Then stop worrying about it. You weren't yourself five years ago. This is the real you." Exedra then whirled one of his heads. "Sorry, I didn't mean to bring that up..." Now Masquerade was the one who helped out the hydra-like Bakugan.

"Hey, you didn't know what that would do. It was just an honest question. Now let's get out of here. I want to be around other people again." Exedra laughed at that, and they used the Launch Star to head back.

**Buoy Base Galaxy**

"Oberus, look!" Shiori said, pointing to the large buoy.

"Makes it obvious why it's called Buoy Base Galaxy. A giant buoy. How long do you think it took for whomever or whatever made this to complete it?"

"Whoever it was, it didn't take them long. The top is only three months younger than the bottom."

"How can you tell this?"

"By the amount of rust buildup and carbon amounts," Shiori said.

"Interesting human," she told herself. The large butterfly like Bakugan flew down to the small shore nearby, and Shiori got off. First, Shiori decided to climb up the big buoy just for the heck of it. She even got some tools and fixed up any of the loose bolts. As she made her way, she noticed that weird creatures of metal and electricity were running around, and there was a mole causing mischief. She squashed the pesky thing with a large extra bolt she found. Oberus was flying around, getting a good view of the large buoy, even an aerial view.

"This is quite the peaceful galaxy. I just wonder. Who would make a planet a buoy?" Oberus pondered.

"Don't know. What I do know is that whoever made it was pretty smart."

"Indeed." Oberus then decided to use the top as a perch, while Shiori went to swim underneath to look for anything else. The buoy had a really strange floatation device. It was a group of fans on the sides to keep it from falling, and one directly underneath to keep it afloat.

'Wow. This is one cool galaxy. Wait, what are those? Uh oh! Bullet Bills!' Shiori managed to swim around and make them hit the base and then got back on the shore. Oberus was relieved. She then blasted the Bullet Bill launchers with her wind powers so that they wouldn't cause more trouble for Shiori. Oberus continued her flying around. The buoy didn't have much to offer, but it was peaceful.

"I think we chose a nice galaxy, Shiori."

"That's what I was thinking," she said, climbing the buoy once again.

**Matter Splatter Galaxy**

"So, what do you think this galaxy is like?" Zorano asked.

"Who knows, but I bet it'll be fun!"

"You chose a galaxy without even thinking about what it could be?! What kind of maniac are you?!"

"Oh, shut up! Did you bother to tell me to ask Mario? No!"

"You should've been smart enough to think about that without my help...or is your brain falling out faster than I thought?"

"I don't bother to think about the outcome of something."

"I'm sure Masquerade would've." And with that, Dammy was stuck.

'Oh great, now she's using Masquerade to shut me up. Stupid Bakugan...'

"Looks like I got someone else to use to shut you up. Nice."

"Can we just see what this galaxy is? I'm sure it's not that bad." In just a few seconds, the two reached the galaxy. It seemed normal at first, but the walkway ahead of them was black in some places, and solid in others.

"How strange. It has a moving spotlight." Dammy said. When it came to the platform, she saw where it was. Once it moved, she decided to step on, but there was no floor! "Whoa!" she exclaimed. "So that's why this place is called Matter Splatter Galaxy! You have to be on the platform while it's lit, and move on it so you don't fall off! Tricky, yet fun!" Zorano groaned.

"Did you honestly have to make us end up in a challenging galaxy?"

"Hey, stop complaining! This doesn't look too hard!" Once the spotlight came back, she jumped on. Zorano took her giant steps and joined her.

"You know, this isn't so hard after all!"

"That's because you have a giant stride. You could float you know. Your giant foot is crowding the pathway." _(Here's a description of Zorano if you're wondering. Basically, she is a black version of Sirenoid with legs, and she carries a black staff. Her eyes are green instead of yellow)_

"Oh, it is, is it?"

"Yes," she said in a serious tone.

"Oh. Okay." Zorano removed her foot and started floating beside her. They then came to a section with multiple paths, and Dammy accidentally chose the wrong one.

"Uh oh!" she hollered as it began to disappear. Luckily, before she lost her balance, Zorano picked her up and placed her on the correct path. "Phew! I owe you one there, Zorano! Thanks!" Zorano then smiled at that. 'What the?! Zorano, smiling? I don't believe it!' Bewildered, she continued to carefully walk, and she became very lucky afterwards, getting on the correct path each time.

"Hey, did you happen to notice this place seems like that of a mansion, almost? A really, really big and spooky one?" Dammy opened her eyes in surprise. She never thought about that!

"Yeah, I guess that you're right! It seems rather peaceful in a way, though. Notice that there aren't any weird enemies here like the other galaxies?" Dammy asked her Bakugan. Now Zorano realized something she hadn't noticed. It seemed they didn't bother to take in much of the scenery. They were careful to keep their eyes on the platform, but were looking at everything they were able to see in the large mansion.

**Toy Time Galaxy**

"So, why did you choose to come back here again, Sara?" Solero asked curiously. Sara just smiled at her always curious Bakugan.

"I thought it would be enjoyable. You know, I thought for sure that Christopher would've wanted to come here, him being a little kid and all," Sara said.

"I see. Well, thank you for letting me know!" Solero said cheerfully.

'That Bakugan. He's always so polite with people. I sure am lucky.' She could tell Solero knew what she was thinking, because her giant solar Bakugan was blushing a little. (_In case you're wondering what the heck Solero looks like, just imagine a one faced Fortress with shoulder plates that have orange and yellow spikes, flames spurting out of ports on his legs, a sun design on his forehead, and his body is mostly orange and yellow, but has multiple red wings with energy lines like Drago that are arranged in a sun design)_

"So, where do you wish to go first, Sara?"

"Hmm. How about...there?" She pointed to a giant cake, far off in the distance.

"Alright! Let's go!" Solero shrunk down to his sphere form and hopped on Sara's shoulder, and they began to explore the galaxy, which was filled with weird, giant toys. As they explored, they quickly realized that there were many planets, like this strange one that looked like Mario as he was in the older games. She was enjoying herself more than anyone else was, grinning ear to ear the whole time. However, there were a few challenges along the way, but she managed to pass them. Pretty soon, they got to the two walls.

"Okay, so how do we get past here?"

"Mario used the Spring Shroom here, but I could lift you up there if you want," Solero offered.

"Oh, what fun would that be?" She ran to the wall, jumped, then turned around. Once her feet hit the wall, she jumped off of it to the other. That's right, she was wall-jumping. She quickly made her way to the top. Solero just had to climb up, being as big as he was. They soon made their way through what seemed like a cookie factory.

"This place sure does have a lot of candy. Chocolate, marshmallows, weird candy...and a cake! What's next, I wonder?"

"Who knows?" She then jumped on a strange platform by using the forks and spoons in at as spring boards. Finally, they walked down the pathway and onto the cake.

"We made it! Nice job, Sara!"

"M hm!" Sara said, chomping down on a piece of the cake.

**Gateway Galaxy**

"Hey, Juggernoid, Frosch, what do you think of this place?" Christopher asked, walking on the small, green planet that they had visited.

"I must say, it has a lot of planets, that's for sure!" Juggernoid said.

"It is quite eventful for a galaxy so small," Frosch added.

"That's why I picked it! There's a lot to do here!"

"So, Christopher, when are you planning to evolve me into my Ultimate form?"

"I'm sure he's planning on finding a tough opponent, other than Dan. Give him time, Juggernoid."

"Okay, Frosch. I'll trust you on that one."

"Where to you two want to go first?" Christopher asked.

"Hm. How's about we check out that planet right there?" Frosch suggested, pointing to a strange, grassy planet. Christopher agreed, and they started planet hopping, enemy squashing, and exploring. Juggernoid actually gained a little experience from defeating all the goombas, koopas, and other enemies of Mario. Smashing the strange little tops was also fun. Christopher actually rode one as if it was some sort of air disc. He even got Frosch to knock it into the air with him on it so that he could ride through space. Christopher had a total blast! Of course, so did the Bakugan.

**Okay, another section completed. I actually managed to squeeze in nine galaxies in a chapter! Nine! If I can make nine more, that's two more chapters for the SMG arc. Hope you look forward to them!**


	29. A Trip Across the Universe: Part 4

_For the first one, I'm sorta jumping quite a few galaxies. So, for the first one, it's a cross-journey of Honeyclimb/Honeyhive. Enjoy!_

**Honeyclimb Galaxy**

"Whoa! This place is actually a part of a giant hive!" Joe said in awe.

"And look at all the strange beetles and bees flying around."

"I know! How do we get up to the top, though? There's no way I'm staying down here for way too long, and I know you don't like to fly that much," he said to his hybrid Bakugan.

"Hm. Perhaps if you had some soft gloves that resemble bees' legs, you could climb up the wall by using the honey filled hexagons?" Wayvern suggested.

"That could work!" Joe managed to summon a bee down to him, and he saw how the hair on the legs was like. He took some fabric and made it to where it was just like the legs. He then created gloves and booties that he used to stick to the wall. It worked! He then climbed to the fourth one to truly test their strength and grip. They were humongous hexagons for his size. Wayvern was impressed with her master's ingenuity.

"Those act almost like magnets!" Wayvern exclaimed. Joe sure was a smart teenager. Wayvern stayed on his shoulder in her sphere form and continued to admire the scenery. However, there were parts where Joe had to jump to clear a gap on the way up, and strange beetles that were constantly charging, as if hoping to knock him and Wayvern off.

"Now I can see why this place is called Honeyclimb Galaxy. It's a big wall that you have to climb," Joe muttered. It was pretty challenging, to say the least. But that didn't stop him from having fun.

"Only if this place had more platforms, it would be a bit more relaxing so that we could take a break," Wayvern said.

"Well, you're in luck! There's a platform right there!" Joe said. He hurried on up the honey covered wall, and eventually made it. He was only halfway up, though. "Alright...we...made it..." He was exasperated. He never had to work that hard on anything. He collapsed on the ground, catching his breath.

"Joe! Are you alright?" Wayvern asked, concerned.

"Yeah...okay...alright...phew. I'm just...out of breath," Joe said, sitting back up, his head against the wall of the hive.

"I wonder. Where do you think the rest of the hive is?"

"Did you notice that there were chips in the giant hive in Honeyhive Galaxy?" Joe asked, now recovered. Wayvern gasped.

"I think you're right! This large wall must be a part of Honeyhive, but it was taken by those evil beetles that tried to knock you off!" Wayvern said in realization.

"So, have any plans on how to take it back?"

"Don't know. Let me contact Sonic."

_Back at the Observatory_

Sonic had just finished telling Rosalina about Vestroia, which greatly surprised her. Even the Lumas were impressed.

"Amazing story! I wish I could go there..."

"Well, Dan, Runo, Marucho, Julie, Shun, and Masquerade were given the Keys to Vestroia..." Speedy led on.

"What are they?"

"By being the soldiers and Guardians, they can open a portal from Earth to Vestroia, and vice versa," Sonic explained.

"So, you could ask them to take the ship there, if you want." Suddenly, Sonic and Speedy got a call on their Bakupods.

"Hang on, gotta take this," Sonic said. The screen flashed to reveal Joe's face. "Hey, Joe! What's going on?"

"Hey, Sonic and Speedy! Listen, I have a question to ask of you. You know how Wayvern and I went to Honeyclimb Galaxy?"

"Yes...?" Speedy said curiously.

"Well, Wayvern and I made a startling discovery. Turns out that the large wall is actually the back of the giant hive in Honeyhive Galaxy!"

"Say huh?!" Sonic, Speedy, and Rosalina yelled in shock.

"Yeah! I know! So, I was wondering if you guys had any idea of how to get it there. You two wouldn't be unable to do a combined Chaos Control on such a large object..." Joe said.

"I have an idea!" said a male voice from behind them. They turned to see who it was. Sonic turned his Bakupod so Joe could see. It was Masquerade and Exedra!

"Masquerade! Exedra! Hey!" Sonic hollered.

"Hey, guys!" they hollered. Rosalina was quite surprised to see Exedra in his normal form. Once the two landed, Sonic, Speedy, and Rosalina ran over to them.

"So, what brings you back here?"

"I was tired of not being around other friends, that's all."

"Oh, I see. Not used to being almost by yourself, huh?" Sonic asked. He meant it as sort of a joke, but it wasn't really.

"Yeah...basically..." Masquerade sighed. Sonic got a confused look on his face. Masquerade chuckled at it. "What's with you?"

"The fact that I meant that as a joke to tick you off, and you actually gave a truthful response," Sonic said, still with that face.

"Well, had you said something like 'You have a fear of being alone, huh?' I would've known it was a bad joke and punched you." Speedy nodded at that. Masquerade seemed to make a lot of sense.

"So, what's this idea of yours?" Speedy asked.

"Oh, just that Exedra and I repaired the Dreadnought..." Masquerade said with a smirk.

"What?! You and Exedra managed to repair a gigantic spaceship by yourselves?!" Sonic said in shock. Masquerade nodded.

"We could attach it to it by the metal cables and pull it there!" Masquerade said.

"That's some smart thinking, Masquerade!" Joe said. Masquerade felt slightly overestimated. He was pink with embarrassment for being complimented so much. He wasn't used to being the center of attention. He led them to the Engine Dome and they went back to the Dreadnought. However, once there, the group didn't see anything. Rosalina, for once, joined the others to explore. She left the oldest Luma in charge

"Uh, Masquerade, I thought the Dreadnought was a giant ship. I don't see anything!" Sonic said. Speedy and Joe couldn't see anything either. However, once they were close enough, Masquerade revealed it.

"Darkus!" Rosalina was surprised when the symbol appeared on his hand. He then waved his hand and dispelled the cloak of darkness. What Sonic, Speedy, Joe, and Rosalina saw next was astounding.

"Holy crud! You guys did repair it!" Sonic screamed in surprise.

"Amazing! I never thought that that is what the Dreadnought looked like! A galaxy sized spaceship!" Rosalina exclaimed.

"This is a sight to behold! Nice work!" Speedy and Joe cheered. They boarded the plane and took off for Honeyclimb Galaxy. Once there, Sonic made quick work of all of the beetles with his Ancient Light ability. Masquerade turned the ship around, and the cables came out and anchored onto the large hive wall. Joe and Wayvern climbed aboard. Next stop, Honeyhive Galaxy.

_Meanwhile..._ **Honeyhive Galaxy**

Pikachu was quietly strolling along the large hive, being friendly to the giant bees.

"Okay, so where should I head first?" Pikachu asked himself, walking along the dirt path. He looked up at the sky, gazing at the clouds, peacefully blowing along. "I knew there was a perfectly good reason I picked this place! It's so relaxing.... The bees are peaceful, the honey is sweet, and the ground is soft like baby powder..." Pikachu lay down on the ground, still staring at the sky. The sun was slightly covered with thin cirrus clouds, creating a slight cover of the brightness. He was looking around when a particular cloud caught his eye. What he saw was slightly saddening. It resembled Ash's face, creating a string of flashbacks. It had been quite a while since he last saw him. Being in Smash World, and doing Pokemon battles? It was tough to decide on which. He wanted to stay with Ash, but he wanted to help save the world if necessary. "Man, I miss Ash, Brock, and Dawn..." Pikachu could feel a few tears well up, but ignored them. He then got an idea. He took out a large picnic basket, full of fruits and two pieces of lightly toasted bread. He took some strawberry jam and fresh Honeyhive honey, and smeared it on the toast. He happily chewed both pieces. He shared his apples with the bees, and he ate the bananas. It seemed that eating good food helped clear his mind of missing his friends, when that thought just hit him. "Oh, great. I'm basically eating this as comfort food instead of just...well, food!" He grumbled to himself, but then realized he should do some more exploring. He ran up to the giant hive on top of the planet, when he noticed that the queen bee was coming inside, instead of being in her flowery meadow. "Hm. I wonder what's going on." His thoughts were answered when a loud noise came from outside. He looked and saw the most amazing sight of his life! It was a gigantic spaceship! What surprised him more was that there were multiple voices inside. Seven of them, for sure.

"Masquerade, bank the ship thirty degrees starboard!" Joe hollered. Masquerade then noticed why. He was about to ram the hive!

"Got it, Joe! Sonic, Speedy, use your super speed to hit the rocket in the direction! I can't turn it that far on my own!"

"Aye aye!" they said. Sonic rammed the front part to the right, and Speedy hit the back part to the left. Masquerade turned the wheel.

"Wayvern! Use your wings to stabilize the rocket once it turns enough!" Joe said.

"Exedra, use your tails to do the same!" Masquerade said.

"Got it!" they said simultaneously. Pikachu was pretty surprised. What were they doing here?" His answer was confirmed when he noticed the large wall being towed by the ship, and the cracks on the other side of the hive. They were going to repair it!

"Hey, guys!" Pikachu hollered. They saw him waving through the window.

"Hey, Pikachu!" they yelled back. Soon, the team of seven rounded the hive, and they placed the wall back. The bees and the queen got busy repairing the hive by gluing the pieces together with chewed up pieces and honey. Once repaired, the bees thanked the team with bunches of honey. Pikachu climbed aboard, and they all went back to the observatory. Masquerade drove the Dreadnought back to its proper place, and recloaked it. He and Exedra went back to the others.

"So, we've managed to repair two, no three galaxies, but got rid of one. Honeyclimb no longer officially exists," Rosalina said, erasing it from the book of galaxies. "The Dreadnought should be found a proper home, in case it should be needed. I'll work on that myself." The others nodded in total agreement.

"That's a logical plan," Speedy said.

"Hey, guys, I just happened to notice something," Masquerade said. They turned their attention to him. "If Vestroia is now united, how come our cards don't have a green ring on them? They still have the six worlds! And, if Vestroia is a multi element world, then shouldn't there be only one Guardian? I mean, I understand us being the soldiers, but still." This definitely intrigued everyone. Indeed, how come?

"Good question..." Pikachu said. Speedy scratched his muzzle, thinking. He then got a brilliant idea that made perfect sense.

"Could it be because that when Vestroia became united, it didn't send any energy waves like it did when Naga absorbed the Silent Core?" Speedy asked. The others gaped in surprise at that question.

"You know, that makes perfect sense!" Sonic said. "I wonder...what do you suppose is happening in Smash World?" Speedy just shrugged. After all, he wasn't a smasher like Sonic and Pikachu were.

_Alright, back to business._

**Snow Cap Galaxy**

"This galaxy is...rather...small," Clayf said, bemused. Even Daisy was bummed.

"Aw, man! I thought it would be some beautiful, snow-covered mountain! Not some puny snow covered cylinder!" Daisy whined.

"As did I. I wonder what Mario did here." Clayf just sat there on Daisy's shoulder, since he was way too big to walk, or even stand, on the small planet. Daisy cupped her hand around her chin, thinking.

"I think...Mario said that...he got the Power Star here by...catching rabbits..."

"What?! Is that the only amusement here?! I can't believe it. This just sucks," Clayf grumbled. Indeed, this was a bummer. What fun was trying to find rabbits, who were most likely white, in deep snow?

"So, what do you suppose we do?"

"Go back?"

"Good idea. I don't want to waster time...catching rabbits," Daisy groaned. "Shortest...trip...ever." Clayf would nod if he could. They then went back to the observatory.

"Hey, Daisy, Clayf. What are you two doing back so early?"

"The galaxy I chose stunk. It was only a planet, like most of those small ones are, but it was so small! Nothing to do in the least," Daisy grumbled, sitting on a bench.

"You know, I don't mean to make an insulting comment, but I'm surprised your little sister Julie didn't squeal saying how cute the Lumas here are," Sonic said, slightly giggling. Speedy pulled up on his ear, but Sonic didn't react. His focus was completely on what Daisy would say next. Daisy was at first confused, but then realized what he meant. Julie would squeal at anything cute.

"You know, come to think of it, neither did any of the other girls. ...weird." Sonic nodded.

"Very."

**Battlerock Galaxy**

"Ah, peace and-a quiet..." Mario said, hopping around. He finally had time to himself. He could relax all he wanted, and have fun. No power-up searching, no Naga, no Metal Sonic, no Shadow minions, and no having to stop fusing worlds. But that did make him wonder. The Super Emeralds and Master Emeralds were keeping it from spreading to more worlds than those that were known to the smashers, but what would happen when they managed to break the energy field and take the Chaos Emeralds back? And...Mario tried to delay this as much as possible...what would happen when the seemingly overreactive cores were placed back? Mario shuddered at the thought of what kind of havoc it could create, but dismissed it. He didn't have time to worry about that. He came here to forget about it for a while, not ponder it. "Let's-a see. Where should I go first?" Mario looked around. Not like there were many choices. One path, three different turns he could take, but still the journeys were similar each time. "Mama mia. I'm-a stumped. I guess I could-a try that path." Mario began hopping around, squashing enemies, and riding platforms. He had to be careful. It wasn't this was like a video game. If he fell to his doom, he fell to his doom. No returning. Eventually, he made it to where he would've gotten the Power Star, but decided to go back and do another path. He did that, over, and over, and over. It was the only thing he could do. But, at least it was a challenge. He hated conquering the easy planets or stars. The only thing he disliked more was when Bowser kidnapped Peach, and he REALLY hated that. Why did he have to mess with her? Did Bowser like annoying him? After all, he isn't really evil when you think about it. "I think I'm-a gonna blow up some-a cannons." He took some coconuts and blew up all of Battlerock Galaxy's weapons.

**Ghostly Galaxy**

"Aha! Boos! I am here to challenge you! Bow down to your new king! Wah ha ha!" Bowser roared at the surprised Boos. However, it wasn't like they'd take him for a king. King Boo was the king. Not him. One of the Boos went up to Bowser and stuck his tongue out.

"Ha! Why would we want you as a king? You're just some overweight Koopa!" Bowser stomped the ground.

"How dare you defy me?! That's it! Allow me to show you my superiority!" Bowser reached down in one swift movement, and picked up the now scared Boo. He then threw it into a pillar, and it was flattened temporarily. It returned to its normal shape, and the Boos went to huddle together. After much talk, they had a plan. Another Boo went up to him.

"Very well, Bowser. If you can pass five tests, we will accept you are indeed superior. First, you must find your way through the haunted mansion," he said, pointing.

"Then, beat Big Boo in a race," said a second.

"Defeat the evil Bouldergeist," a third Boo added.

"Conquer Matter Splatter Mansion," said the fourth Boo.

"Then finally, defeat King Boo," a fifth Boo finished. Bowser only laughed at the Boos.

"Do you honestly think I can't pass those stupid tests?! You must think I'm clumsy!" He smirked. "You're on." Bowser ran full speed to two of the pillars, revealing the two Launch Stars he would need later on. He then ran through the mansion. The Boos cringed each time Bowser tended to break something in the mansion, just to show off. As if by magic, he had completed the first test in just s few minutes. Of course, he did get stuck a few times in puzzling rooms. He was never good at those. He found the Launch Star at the end, and he went back to the others.

"One down, but still four to go, Bowser!" they mocked. But before they could say something else, Bowser was already flying to the area full of Pull Stars to face Big Boo.

"Alright, Big Boo, are you ready!?" Bowser yelled. Big Boo appeared, laughing.

"Let's race!" They got in position. "Ready...set....go!" Big Boo used his super start to get a head start, but it failed. Bowser used his Flying Fortress to make his way over gaps and mines, transferring from Pull Star to Pull Star as if he had done this before.

"Go, Big Boo!" the Boss cheered. Big Boo was determined, but Bowser's heavy shell squashed his head, making it like a trampoline, giving Bowser the win. "No!!!" they yelled. Bowser was laughing his head off.

"These tests are sooooo easy! No wonder you have a lousy king!" Bowser mocked. King Boo hated that sentence.

"Laugh while you can, Koopa. Bouldergeist will be sure to shut you up." Bowser then started searching around, and he finally found another Launch Star behind him, just floating there. Using his Flying Fortress move, he got inside and was launched to a passageway that led to a large disc.

"This must be where I have to face Bouldergeist. I wonder what he is. Some sort of poltergeist that embodies rocks? Ha!" Bowser was laughing at the thought of it, until he jumped on and Bouldergeist appeared. He was a poltergeist embodying rocks! This...would be tough. He tried incinerating it, smashing it, and everything, but it didn't do a thing!

"Ha! Bouldergeist will defeat you after all!" the Boos mocked. Bowser was frustrated. As if dodging strange exploding Boos and rock pillars wasn't enough, he had to deal with those idiots. Suddenly, it hit him! Explosions!

"Ha! That all you got?!" Bowser roared, and he activated his Final Smash. He was now Giga Bowser! That way, the Boos and pillars wouldn't affect him. He then picked up multiple Bomb Boos, and threw them back!

"Oh no!" King Boo hollered. Bowser had figured out Bouldergeist's weakness! He would throw one, wait a few seconds, and then throw another before it exploded on him. However, after a few hits, Bouldergeist rebuilt himself!

"What?!? Is this thing invincible?!?!" Bowser was absolutely amazed. How did Mario beat him? Unless...of course! He just had to keep throwing Bomb Boos! However, it was now trickier with him summoning more pillars. It took him, like, fifteen minutes to hit that tricky thing! But, it still left the Boos speechless. How could Bowser be this tough? He went back to the Boos, gave them a wallop for mocking him, and went to his fourth destination. Matter Splatter Mansion was the easiest ever! Be fast and careful, get the coins, get the key, and find the Launch Star. He did it in one minute flat. Once back, the final test was on. King Boo was floating there, just staring intently at Bowser, who was stretching. Once he was done, they glared at each other, each intent on winning respect.

"Ready!" one of the underling Boos said. "Fight!" The two began exchanging blow after blow, but Bowser was at a slight disadvantage, what with some of them phasing right through King Boo. However, one technique was useable on an untouchable ghost. Fire Breath! The intense heat knocked him out of his state, and they went back to punching. Eventually, a bruised up Bower and King Boo collapsed. The fight ended in a tie. After that, the two formed a truce. Bowser wasn't king, but he proved himself equal to King Boo. He then happily munched on a luncheon prepared by the Boos.

**Good Egg Galaxy**

"Alright, so where are these eggs?" DK asked himself. He went searching around, but all he could find were star bits and Lumas. The only things remotely like an egg were planets, and the only egg he could see was far off. He had to get there. "Me hungry!" he said crazily. Who'd have thought he loved eggs as much as bananas? By traveling from Launch Star to Sling Star and back, he reached the planet. That was the only thing he wanted to do. He wanted to cook that egg into an omelet. He picked it up, but heard a loud noise inside. The thing in the egg was trapped! It was hollow after all! DK set it down, and smashed the egg open. However, the thing inside didn't like that. It was Petey Piranha! And it was charging at him! As he dodged, he yelled. "Hey! What's the big idea?! I saved you!" But it seemed Petey was too angry to listen. DK had no choice. He activated his Final Smash. Pulling out his bongos, he performed his Konga Beat. The intense shockwaves sent the live plant flying elsewhere. "Well, I guess I won't be eating any eggs today..." DK growled, but was then congratulated by the Lumas with...he couldn't believe it! They made him a giant omelet! DK hollered for joy, and then chowed down. It was the best omelet he ate in a while.

**Bonefin Galaxy**

As Link was about to make splashdown into the sphere of seemingly suspended water, he had to be sure he was equipped with everything.

"Let's see. I have my Zora Tunic on, I have my Water Bombs ready, and I have my Iron Boots in my hand. I'm all set to face this Kingfin thing." Whatever Kingfin was made him curious. "I wonder what weapons he has in stock." Once he landed, a huge sound alerted him. He pulled out a bomb, ready and waiting. On cue, a humongous skeletal fish swam toward him from the other side! "Whoa! That's Kingfin?" Link was pretty surprised. How could he defeat it? Mario had used Koopa shells, but Link didn't know how to really use them. He could only throw his bombs while on ground, but he couldn't throw them high enough! Besides, he was busy slashing away at the torpedoes it shot. He was about to go nuts trying to figure a strategy, when it struck him. The Koopa shells were actually easy to throw and use, especially if he got a red one. However, it would take five hits to KO him, according to Mario. So, he placed a Water Bomb in the shell, and he got in range. He threw the shell, and it exploded. The bomb slowly sunk into the belly of the beast, and it obliterated the skeleton. "Alright! I won! I beat Kingfin in record time!"

**Deep Dark Galaxy**

"Okay, so this is Deep Dark Galaxy, huh?" Ganondorf asked himself. It was strangely dark, yet it felt normal and not like an evil darkness. It was basically like a dark lake. A few smaller planets were around, but not that many. He did feel stronger here, even though it wasn't totally dark. "Okay, so where should I go first?" He then noticed torches around. He figured it would be interesting to see dark flames around him. He used his Warlock Punch and lit them all, opening to separate gates. One led to the small, dark lake, and another led to the rest of the planet. He decided to try the lake first. He wanted to know where it would lead him. Once he dived, he saw that it led to a tunnel. As he traveled through, it occurred to him that something interesting was at the end. He could feel it. He surfaced, and the sight before him was astounding. "Amazing! A haunted pirate ship! Talk about spooky!" He climbed out of the dark water and onto the ship, and began to absorb the darkness. "Now this is power! What a galaxy!" he said after absorbing the darkness in the area around him. He then went back to shore and began to explore the other area he had opened up. It was full of strange pillars. He just had to make his way by pillar jumping. He then reached the end of the galaxy. "Hm. I must admit, this place is not like I expected, but its pretty good. It is dark, after all. No sunlight whatsoever. I would spend a long time here if I could..." Of course, he couldn't. He had to save the world, even though that's unbecoming of a villain. He wondered if Bowser felt that way.

**Sweet Sweet Galaxy**

"Oh boy oh boy oh boy! Candy, chocolate, and...is that a wafer cookie platform near the end of the level with the ice cream cake?! YESSS!" Kirby was jumping for joy and excitement. This place was edible paradise! He slowly worked his way onto the moving platforms, sampling the flavors and float jumping over the gaps and electric wires. He even sucked up one pink one whole. Then, wonder of wonders! The next section was full of platforms and gingerbread walls! Kirby could barely contain himself. He sucked up section after section, piece by piece of the wall. He did manage to save a few. Even though he wanted to devour the whole galaxy, he had to keep it existing. Once at the cake, he sucked up the two middle layers. It was the best ice cream cake ever. He then just decided to float jump about, just admiring the delectable yet tiny galaxy. It was a short jaunt, but he loved it just the same.

**Alright! I can't believe how smoothly things are going! Just one more chapter and the SMG arc will be complete. But don't fret loyal readers. You have plenty of chapters to look forward to.**


	30. A Trip Across the Universe: Part 5

**A/N:** Alright! Chapter 30! Yes, now that I have reached a new double digit section, I have started a new tradition. I shall reply to everyone's reviews at the beginning of each chapter, just to make you all happy.

alxkend: You know my reply. I sent it in an e-mail. I'm glad to know that this story never ceases to amaze you. What a compliment!

PEJP Bengtzone: Thanks for encouraging me to keep going. As for cameos, don't worry, I'm planning on some as we speak. Like maybe they could meet Optimus Prime sometime. And definitely, the other smashers will make appearances, since there will be a Smash World arc to look forward to. As for Gold Leaf Galaxy, I can't remember if there were bees, but they are way too different in seasonal approaches to relate to each other properly. As for the Crossbow, why the heck didn't I think of that?! Thanks!

CloneGirl: Yes, Masquerade is a genius here. I was sure you'd like that.

InuDemon Priestess: Wow! A new reader! Thank you for reviewing! I hope the future chapters will please you! And thanks for adding me to Favorite Author, Favorite Story, Author Alert, and Story Alert! You're the second person to add it to everything! Be sure to vote on my poll!

**Boo's Boneyard Galaxy**

"So, this is Boo's Boneyard Galaxy, hm? I wonder what Mario did here..." Meta Knight said. He began to explore what seemed like a labyrinth filled with skeletons. This place was a bit creepier than he thought at first, but only a little. It seemed rather short, like most of those secret galaxies were. They were more like planets to him. However, he wasn't complaining. At least he could get away from Kirby's annoyance. In fighting, he was a good rival. But when it came to normal behavior, Kirby was just annoying to him. Maybe the Boo that lived there would be more of a challenge. After exploring for what seemed like hours, Meta Knight gave up and returned to the beginning. To his surprise, the giant Boo he had heard about had appeared! Meta Knight drew his Mach Sword, ready and waiting. The Boo only laughed.

"Relax, young one. I am not here to harm you. I'd only like to challenge you to a race. Hee hee!" Meta Knight still had his sword out, but he relaxed a little.

"A race, hm? Very well; I accept your challenge!" If his face wasn't hidden behind that silver mask, the Boo would've seen his confident smirk.

"Alright! From here down to the finish line! I know this place like the back of my hand, so you should just follow the signs."

"I did already fly through this place once. I have no need for assistance." The Boo now felt a huge sweat drop on the back of his head-like body (okay, that sounded weird, but it's true! A boo's just a head with arms!) The race began. Luckily, Meta Knight was able to fly and glide when he needed, and he was indeed a tough match for the Boo. Where it turned invisible to go through walls, Meta Knight drilled right through them. It was obvious he would win, and he did. The Boo shrugged in defeat, and Meta Knight just sat silently. He was not one to brag.

**Drip Drop Galaxy**

"Alright! I wonder what dangers Mario had to face here..." King Dedede said. Having his hammer ready, he was prepared for anything that would be thrown at him. He also had a slew of Waddle Dees, Waddle Doos, and Gordos, just in case his hammer was unusable. Once he made splashdown, he was quick to realize the challenge. It seemed that three eels were causing trouble. All he had to do was take them down. So, his hammer wouldn't be useful against them. There was only one effective way. "Alright, you stupid eels! Prepare yourselves for my...Waddle Dee Army!" He started glowing, then suddenly, a huge squadron of his servants attacked, defeating the eels rather quickly. He then began to swim around. Penguins are naturally good swimmers, so Dedede had no trouble. Of course, his heavy bodyweight counteracted it slightly. It was challenging, but at least swimming could shave off a few of those pounds. It was a rather small planet, though, but he wasn't absolutely complaining. "I wonder if the others are enjoying themselves as much as me!" he said rather cheerfully.

**Space Junk Galaxy**

Once Captain Falcon landed on Space Junk Galaxy, it made perfect sense as to why it was called that. There were bits and pieces of leftover junk floating around. "Huh, this will make an excellent obstacle course for the Blue Falcon, but... I should explore this place out first before I set up a training path. Where to begin?" CF then noticed a strange, circular rock with a white oval in the middle. It was a giant cocoon, and it was in the design of a spider egg. He started up his trusty Blue Falcon, and he flew right into it, destroying the spider and web in the process. "Oh yeah! Show me your moves!" he taunted the flying spider. Of course, it couldn't while flying through space. And so, he began to get a feel for the area. As he walked, he couldn't help but to notice that not to far from him was a Launch Star that led to a planet...that for some reason was shaped like Yoshi! This made him chuckle. "Yoshi. How weird. What's next, I wonder?" It was then that he noticed that there were strange silver Power Stars floating around, and there were pieces of neon platforms in all kinds of geometric shapes. He walked toward, but thought that he couldn't get near. However, once on the border, they quickly gravitated toward him! He was surprised, no doubt about that. But he was more curious than anything. And with that, he continued to walk around, noting every passageway and shape. He had to keep this place in mind for his obstacle course. Weaving over and under them would be quite the fun challenge (is it just me, or am I making CF's challenge loving personality well known?). Once he collected all of the silver Power Stars, they revealed a clear one, but it didn't intrigue him in the least. He then turned his attention above him and noticed a few abandoned airships. He had been told of Kamella, Bowser's trusty Magikoopa assistant, by Mario and Luigi. Mostly Mario, though. He decided to include them in his obstacle course, since some rowdy Goombas were arming the cannons. "Alright, now that I have explored the whole galaxy, it's time to plot my obstacle course." He went back to the Blue Falcon with a complete mental map of the galaxy, erasing any impervious areas. In just ten minutes, he had his whole course planned out. He would take five laps for endurance, weave through the platforms for altitude control, dodge the cannon blasts for speed and side to side control, and use the moving platforms for his reverse skills. He would also go through the ring of rock for the fun of it. So, he started up his vehicle and got in position. Then....3, 2, 1, Blast off! He traveled through the course with relative ease. It was challenging to weave though the quick gravitating platforms, but the rest was totally easy. However, the Blue Falcon ran out of gas, just as he had finished four of five laps. "Oooh...dang it, dang it, dang it!" CF yelled, stomping the ground beneath him.

**Sling Pod Galaxy**

"So, this is a...rather small galaxy..." Samus said, most likely confused at the small size of the galaxy. It was obvious that it was as simple as dodging obstacles and using the sling pods to get to the next section. She was just about to formulate a strategy when cannonballs were launched at her! She immediately pointed the cannon covering her arm at the devices shooting the cannonballs, and she powered up her Charge Shot. With expert aim, she was able to destroy all of them. She then got into the first sling pod, and she began to maneuver around the obstacles before her. She just about had the hang of it, when suddenly, she lost control and wound up slowly falling down from the galaxy. _Not good, not good, not good!_ Samus was, for once, panic-stricken. She then remembered something that could save her. It was her Final Smash! Holding her cannon out, she fired her Zero Laser, which incinerated some obstacles. The recoil made her Power Suit fall apart, which allowed her to use her Plasma Wire. She launched it up, and it latched onto an edge. She was safe! It then retracted, bringing her up to the ledge for her to grab on. Once she climbed back up, she decided she would just stay on the platform and practice her aiming skills. Boy, how she envied Sonic's rival, Shadow. He was a good shooter, according to him. "Boy, with Shadow's skills, why isn't he a smasher? I mean, aside from the nasty attitude, he's just like a cross between Sonic, for his speed and abilities, and Snake, because of his use of weapons." Little did she know that Shadow was watching through Tails' birdbot, which had sent nanobot cameras to watch their galaxy journeys. He scoffed at the thought of him being near his rival. He especially scoffed at being compared to Sonic. However, he wasn't the only one annoyed with Samus, but the other was annoyed for a whole other reason. Rouge, who had stopped in for a visit, was eyeing Samus with envy.

"How come that freak of nature is a smasher? Why not me?" Rouge whined.

"Because, although you two are similar, you'd just use it as an advantage to be a stupid fan service character..." Shadow said. Hey, it was the truth! Rouge just liked to show off. Samus didn't. Rouge was inwardly cursing her so-called friend, when she realized Samus was talking about her.

"Of course, I definitely wouldn't want to see his batty friend become a smasher. That Rouge, I swear, she's a hooker." Rouge gaped at that. "She's such a fan service character."

"Told ya," Shadow said innocently.

"I mean, the boys think she's 'fun to look at'...." Rouge smirked.

"Of course. I'm irresistible." Shadow coughed at Rouge's narcissism.

"...but EVERYBODY thins she's painful to listen to! Knuckles' definition of her is perfect! I just can't wait 'till the day I can tell that to her face!" Samus laughed at the thought of insulting Rouge directly, but she already did. Rouge's face was red with anger toward Knuckles and Samus. She stomped off, leaving a slightly confused, yet slightly satisfied Shadow.

**Hurry-Scurry Galaxy**

"What the... You mean to tell me I was excited to land on a stupid satellite?!" R.O.B. yelled to no one in particular. He was ticked. He thought it would be more fun than....this...! And what were those? Music notes? "Oh, great. I picked a planet with a thing for music..." However, once R.O.B. landed the platform beneath him started to shrink! He ran forward, hitting the music note on the platform. It disappeared and made a sound. "How strange." R.O.B. quickly moved forward and hit another. It made a sound, and the platform began to slowly disappear. He then realized the objective. "I gotta collect all the music notes!" And with that, he took off, speeding around the planet. "Now I see why this place is called Hurry-Scurry Galaxy!" he said, encircling the small satellite for the fifth time. Only about, five more times to go. He now had to jump over gaps with his rockets, and he had to be careful now. But, with luck, he had rounded the planet. "Okay, now what?" the confused robot asked. However, his question was answered a little too quickly. He was going toward the center! What if he would remain suspended there forever? The galaxy was way too strong to pull from! He was starting to panic, but then he noticed that the center was a Warp Star that would take him back! He relaxed as he hit it and it took him back.

**Rolling Green Galaxy**

As Marth was falling toward the strange galaxy, he was curious at the yellow ball at the very beginning. Once he landed, he read the sign in front of it. "Hm. Stand on the ball and balance on it to proceed through the course, huh? Cool!" Marth jumped on, pulling out his sword to practice slashing and balancing, a key element for a warrior. The course was rather easy by the looks of things. It reminded him of a small, lush golf course. There were tricky traps and platforms, but he was sure he could pass them. And so, the circus act began. Balancing on the ball, it jumping when he did, he got from place to place with relative ease. The platforms were slightly difficult since they were narrow, but all he had to do was keep his cool. The Goombas nearby attempted to either jump up, where they met the sharp edge of his blade, or they tried to knock the ball, getting squashed in the process. "Man, are they really that...stupid?" Marth asked himself. They were rather foolish. Even though it was fun, it was short. Soon, it landed in the final part, a giant loop. "Aww, is the ride over already?" he whined. He hopped off and began to backtrack to the beginning, and it was a heck of a lot easier to do. It was a pleasant stroll, and it gave him some time to collect some Star Bits. It was a great galaxy.

**Grand Finale Galaxy**

"Hey! Isn't this the Mushroom Kingdom?" Lucario asked, looking at the houses and the large castle over yonder. Mewtwo nodded, confirming Lucario's question.

"I must say, there seem to be a lot of purple coins around here..." Mewtwo said, shooting some Shadow Balls for practice.

"I think that was Mario's objective. To gather all 100 purple coins." Mewtwo stopped.

"Did you just say...100?" Mewtwo asked, slack-jawed.

"...uh...yeah...? What's wrong with that?" Mewtwo stared at him as if he had grown another head.

"...do you realize how tough that would be?!" Mewtwo asked, exasperated.

"Actually, except for one, all of them are in a path leading toward the castle," Lucario said, who was now launching some Aura Spheres at random, empty crates. Mewtwo sighed with relief. He then stopped practicing and began to look around the small village. It was obvious that there was a giant festival going on. There were festival lights, tents, and Toadstools cheering as Star Bits fell from the night sky. Mewtwo found a sign nearby.

"Hm. The Star Festival, hm? This looks like fun."

"Indeed it does, Mewtwo," said a stargazing Lucario. "Feel like checking out the place? I think I saw a cool shop over there."

"Sure. At least it'll give us something else to do. As they walked, they collected Star Bits and purple coins galore. After about five minutes in the village, they met back to show their freebies.

"Take a look! I have 30 purple coins and 60 Star Bits!" Lucario bragged. Mewtwo sighed.

"...Same as you..." he grumbled. Lucario smirked.

"What's wrong? Lost your competitive touch?" he teased. However, a death glare from Mewtwo shut him up. "Geez! Calm down! It was just a joke!" he said, blowing fur out of his eyes. Lucario was annoyed with Mewtwo's short temper. Mewtwo just huffed, but stopped when a huge shop caught his eye. He went over to see what it sold. Lucario continued gathering purple coins and Star Bits, but it wasn't cheating at all. Once Mewtwo came back empty handed, he saw Lucario on the bench wearing a huge smile.

"What's with you?" Mewtwo asked. Lucario just gave him a familiar look. "You...you didn't..."

"Oh yes I did!" Lucario said, holding 40 more coins and 140 Star Bits.

"Dude! Not cool!" Lucario chuckled.

"You don't sound that good at using street talk, man."

"Shut up..." Mewtwo was severely peeved. How come he was the only one who didn't sound OK when talking like everyone else? "Well, what do you plan on doing with those stupid 70 coins and 200 Star Bits, anyway?"

"You mean 100 coins and 260 Star Bits." Mewtwo was confused. "Hand 'em over." Mewtwo shook his head in surprise.

"No way, man. These are mine." Mewtwo said, guarding them defensively. "We never made any bet."

"I don't care!" Lucario whined. "Come on, fork 'em up..." He started pestering him.

"That's it! Grrraaah!" Before Lucario could react, Mewtwo jumped him, and the two began tumbling down the hill at uncontrollable speed, fighting each other. The toads watched in pure amazement at the two. Aura and shadow were shot out from the two, hitting multiple frivolous items. Once the two were done, they had a verbal argument, calling each other pretty bad names. Eventually, a brave Toad had to knock the two out with two separate frying pans (ha ha! Frying pans!)

_THWOOOOOONNNG!_ was the only sound that could be heard throughout the village. The characters in Smash World, especially Peach, were surprised by that. However, she was enjoying this too much to care. But that wasn't the only thing surprising. The rest of the smashers, from Luigi to Snake, saw a buckled Shadow, gripping his sides as he writhed on the floor with...laughter!

'Shadow...is actually laughing?! Call the presses!' thought everyone but him.

"Ha ha ha ha ha tickle...ah ha ha ha...frying pan...now that's good!" he said, laughing hysterically. However, as soon as he recovered, seeing everyone's shocked expressions made his face turn as red as his highlights. He quickly covered his red face with a conveniently placed black face mask, weaving the string through his quills and attaching it to the other port on the mask. Back in Grand Finale Galaxy, the Toad tossed down the two frying pans, each of them having a face impression on it. The two dizzy Pokemon pushed the Toad back to his tent with a quick and lucky shove.

"Duh...nice little Toady, back in the tent you go... Pretty birdie..." said the two. They then fell unconscious on the spot, thus ending their journey for an hour or two.

**Sea Slide Galaxy**

Tails was completely awestruck at the large loop ahead of him. It had everything! Lush animal life, plant life, shores, and it even had a lighthouse! It was like an elliptical Beach Bowl Galaxy! "Wow!" exclaimed the intrigued vulpine. He soon landed on the shore, gazing at the scenery. "Okay, so where to first? There's so much to explore!" First he glanced at the gigantic tree behind him, then at the lighthouse. He then looked into the crystal clear water, and thought about examining the sea life. He then decided on that first, and dove into the water. As he swam around, he saw that seaweed flourished like mad. It must have been some new salt formation, because it didn't sting his eyes at all. "Hm. This may come in handy for helping Cosmo grow faster!" He pulled out a test tube, pulled out the cork, and then placed it back on. He had plenty of samples. He then examined the seaweed closely. It was a very healthy shade of green. He didn't know why, but he just HAD to apply science to anything. It was...like an addiction to him for some reason. "Let's see...I think I'll go up to the top of the tree and gaze out at the scenery!" He climbed up, gathering a few Star Bits and leaf samples here and there on his way to the top. Once on, he just took in the breathless sights around him. It was truly amazing. "I knew I chose this galaxy for a big reason! It's...awesome!" Tails was speechless after that.

"How can one person be in awe of so little...?" Shadow half-asked, half-groaned. He still had the plain black mask on since everyone was there. And by everyone, that meant every smasher left, every assist trophy, Eggman, Master Hand, and Crazy Hand, and Rouge. How he wished he could just Chaos Control away already so that he wouldn't have to put up with their talking about his earlier incident.

He caught phrases like: 'I wonder if that's an impostor Shadow...' or 'Is Shadow really not emotionless?' Man, he hated those. He kept his gaze on the multiple screens depicting the journeys of the others. He wasn't focused on any in particular, just watching glimpses of each. Tails then spontaneously flew off of the giant tree and to the lighthouse, where he began to analyze the mechanics of the light, even though he knew how they worked. He had a lot of fun.

**Beach Bowl Galaxy**

"Alright! I'm back at Beach Bowl Galaxy! I wonder where I should go first!" Amy said cheerfully. She walked around the sunlit shore, taking in the familiar sights and smells of the small saltwater lake. She then started swinging on the giant wooden swing, when her line of vision caught a really weird cylindrical planet that had Thwomps and Tox Boxes on it. "How the heck do I get there?" She then remembered something from earlier. What about the underwater cave Mario had explored? Amy dove in quickly, trying to find the entrance to the cave. It wasn't that hard, though. The water was perfectly clear through her snorkeling mask. "Wow! That cave entrance is huge! I wonder if there's a Launch Star or something near here." She searched for any secret area, and she found one easily. She took a nearby Koopa shell and threw it into a cracked wall, making it reveal a Launch Star. Swimming toward it, she prepared herself for the cubic enemies. Once in, she tensed up with excitement. And soon, she was flung into the air! As she flew, she got a good idea of what she was up against. Luckily, her Piko Piko Hammer could smash the Thwomps. She wasn't sure about the Tox Boxes, though. "I hope it'll just take a few bashes with this puppy to demolish those Tox Boxes." She landed and began to walk carefully. Once at the first Thwomp, she smashed it once with her hammer, making it crumble as she predicted. Then she set her sights on the Tox Box. She threw her hammer in a boomerang fashion, it bonking it, and returning to her. The only thing it did was knock it back and paralyze it for a bit. But, that was good enough. She ran at the approaching enemy, threw her hammer, and jumped over it. She repeated the process until she reached the other end of the cyclone slate. At the end, the Launch Star sent her back to the beach. "Aah...I'm tired..." she said, laying bak on a lawn chair. Everything was perfect.

_Alright, that concludes the galaxies!_

Sonic, Speedy, Rosalina, Masquerade, Exedra, Joe, Wayvern, Pikachu, Daisy, Clayf, and R.O.B. were just waiting for the others to arrive. Slowly, one by one, they returned in surprise that others were back so soon. Once they were back, they told everyone about their adventures. The nanobot sentries returned to the birdbot, and they stored themselves inside. Eggman turned off the multi screens off, while the main one was still on.

"Man, quite a few of you had a good time!" Sonic said in awe of their shared stories. Speedy didn't recognize Samus in her Zero Suit Form for a second, but then did. All of the males but he were going gaga over Samus, which she hated. All of the girls grabbed their boyfriends' ears and dragged them away. Speedy assisted Amy drag Sonic away, but they couldn't do anything about the males without girlfriends, so the Bakugan took care of dragging them off. Harpus pinched Komba's shoulder, making him buckle.

"Harpus! You know I can't stand that pressure point!" Komba barked.

"I know!" she said, pinching it more as she dragged him. Samus then activated her Final Smash, regaining her Power Suit. Man, Rouge was ticked at all the attention Samus had, even though she knew she hated it. Shadow was finally tired of wearing the mask, so he took it off. Then, they started discussing their next destination.

"I think we should help Pikachu, Lucario, and Mewtwo next. After all, they have more power-ups to get than Sonic and Mario do combined," Speedy suggested

Suddenly, Link interrupted them with a, "What the?! A new power-up?!"

"Huh?" Pikachu asked.

"It's my crossbow!" Link cheered.

"You have a crossbow?" Sonic asked.

"Yep. It says here that it's deep in some remote forest near Wardington."

"So it's close to home, huh?" Dan asked. "That's cool!"

"Indeed it is interesting," Shun said.

"Speaking of home," Marucho interrupted, "Alice, I thought Michael and you moved near us. How come he's still in his mansion?"

"He realized he forgot some things, but he called me earlier, saying he'd be back in a few days. Oh! I just remembered something! I caught this on my video camera, and I was wondering if you guys knew what it was," Alice said. She plugged it into Sara's laptop, and it showed the footage of a blue blur purifying the water.

"Hey, is that wind blowing from the north of the galaxy?" Pikachu asked.

"Yeah. What of it?" Masquerade asked. Pikachu took out a red device.

"What the heck is that thing?" Runo asked.

"Ooh! Ooh! I know what it is!" Masquerade said excitedly, as if he was a third-grader answering a quiz question. He took it from Pikachu. "A real Pokedex! Cool! And I bet you snuck it from from your buddy Ash, huh?"

"How do you know Ash?"

"I don't. I just watch a lot of TV. You didn't know someone secretly records your journeys using sophisticated cameras?" Masquerade asked the dumbfounded Pikachu.

"Without our consent?! Okay, know I'm ticked off." Pikachu started grumbling.

"Yeah. It's this show called Pokemon DP: Battle Dimension..." Masquerade said. Pikachu was now growling.

"Whatever," he said, pointing the Pokedex at the screen. It showed a picture of a strange...blue dog thing.

"Suicune, the Aurora Pokemon! It races around the world to purify fouled water. It dashes away with the north wind," it said. The others stared in amazement at the device.

"And what's best about this is...Ash has NO idea I even have it," Pikachu said with a huge smirk. Mario stood up.

"Well, we-a better get-a going. It was nice-a seeing you again, Rosalina," Mario said. Rosalina bowed.

"Thanks for stopping by!" she cheered. Then, all the girls but Daisy remembered something.

"Oh! We almost forgot! We were too caught up in this galaxy thing to do this!" Julie said. The girls ran over squealing and hugging the Lumas. "So cute!" Julie squealed. She set it down and ran back along with the others. "Okay! Now we can go!" she said to the guys, who had sweat drops on the backs of their heads. Shun formed an air bubble, and Dan fired his Nova Rocket. They took off back to Earth. Once they got there, Kato's plane was still there, and they got inside to head back to Wardington. Little did they know that another smasher would be joining them on their next journey...

**Oh boy! The SMG arc is done! And this time, no hints to the next smasher, that way it'll be a total surprise to most readers! Look forward to more adventures, loyal readers!**


	31. That Makes 17 Smashers!

**A/N:** Okay, it's Chapter 31! And as it said, a new smasher will join the Brawlers this chapter. But now, it's time for Review Response with chaohacker!

alxkend: Well, you happen to know the smasher in this chapter, but I won't reveal it in this response.

PEJP Bengtzone: Well, as I had stated in a much earlier chapter, general means a conglomeration of multiple genres. So, it seeming like a partial slapstick comedy still keeps it in the general. At least it's still mostly adventure. Also, as for the Bakugan Yu-Gi-Oh! crossover you're suggesting, I don't think I could manage to create such a huge crossover, considering I have not watched or viewed practically 90% of the things you listed. Also, with the whole Harpus seeming close to being a girlfriend to Komba, Komba has a crush on Jewels, even though he was great at acting like he didn't. She just doesn't join the brawlers. Neither does Jenny, since that would make things a little confusing and uneven. I'll be sure to PM you an idea for the Yu-Gi-Oh crossover. Okay?

CloneGirl: You sure are funny in your reviews!

"This is so cool! I can't believe how smoothly things are coming along! Just a few power-ups left to go, no Shadow Bakugan attacks, and no worlds fusing at the moment! Everything is going perfect!" Dan said, his feet resting on the table in front of the couch. Runo did a karate chop on his legs, making him pull them off. "What the heck was that about?!"

"Thank you," Runo said. Dan then realized what she meant, after about ten seconds.

"Oh. Well, sorry!" Dan said sarcastically.

"It took you ten seconds to realize why I did that? Man, you are dense!" Runo insulted. Dan pouted.

"You didn't have to go to such an extreme..." Dan began.

"Extreme nothing. I could have gotten Shun to, and just imagine what would happen if HE chopped your legs!" Runo said with a smirk. Dan's face became pale, while Shun had a bigger smirk than Runo.

"Yeah, just be thankful that Shun is just a regular ninja, instead of like the ones on that show, Naruto," Masquerade said.

"Geez Louise! Honestly, Masquerade, you are such a TV addict!" Dan groaned. His comment resulted in a punch on the head from Dammy.

"Don't you insult my Maskerado-kun! (Yep, CloneGirl, I'm having your character now use your pet name for him occasionally. I'm sure you'll like that.)" she yelled. She then sat beside Masquerade, and ran her finger through his hair as always. For some reason, he was laughing now.

"Ha ha! Oh, great!" he said laughingly. "You're already using a pet name now?!" He was in almost uncontrollable laughter. This made Dammy giggle. The others rolled their eyes at her name for him. After about five seconds, he recovered to make a serious point. "You know, guys, it is strange that only two worlds of the smashers have appeared. Link's and DK's. I know Green Hill and Station Square appeared, but what about the rest of the known zones from Sonic's worlds, like Icecap and Casinopolis?" This surprised everyone.

"Yeah, what's up with that? Something's not right..." Chan Lee said.

"Perhaps it's the fact that some of them are on another Earth, and some are on that planet Mobius. Sonic has multiple places on two different worlds," Klaus said, thinking.

"Klaus, have you checked out all of the worldly news stations for, well, anything?" Daisy asked.

"Yes. Nothing yet, but I'm sure there will be..." Klaus replied.

"I have a feeling we will have a great challenge ahead of us," Frosch.

"Yeah, with all these worlds coming together, do you realize what Naga could do?" Drago asked.

"No, what?" Alice said. Although Drago was in his sphere form, they could see a mix of seriousness and fear coursing through them.

"The thing is, he has already gained control of Metal Sonic. What if....he could very well summon or bring back all of the super villains from your worlds and place them under his spell?!" he said intently. Everyone gasped at that.

"Oh, crap!" Preyas yelled, panic-stricken. "Could you imagine what would happen if he did that and boosted their power by slightly controlling the power of the Super Emeralds and Master Emerald?!" He was now jumping around the place. The others were silent, but they were silently freaking out beyond belief, thanks to Preyas. Speedy was especially frightened.

"O-oh-h n-n-no-o," Speedy stammered.

"What's wrong, brother?" Sonic asked, placing a concerned hand on Speedy's right shoulder.

"W-what Preyas just said....you guys know for a fact that I hate fighting...w-what if...what if Naga sends some to get...me?!" he stuttered. He felt the same fear from when he faced Theodore. To be terrified for his life. Sonic wanted to punch him in the arm to snap him out of it, but he couldn't harm him anymore.

"Don't worry, Speedy. You're nuts if you think you'll be alone with powerful super villains," Sonic said. Suddenly, Amy stood up.

"Hey, hey, wait a minute! Preyas, what on Earth makes you think Naga could control the Super Emeralds, anyway?" Amy asked, strictly.

"Hello! Earth to Amy! He has an accomplice, remember?" said a hyper Zorano. Amy then gasped.

"Oh. My. Gosh." Amy sat down, her left hand on her forehead, elbow on her thigh. She tried to absorb this development. She completely forgot that Metal Sonic could either help Naga learn, or he could do it for him. Dan may have been frightened, but the look on his face was pure determination.

"Well then, we'd better get your power-ups as quickly as possible, and then practice their Bakugan effects!" Dan said, punching his palm with the other hand. The others looked up at him with total agreement.

"Yeah! So, where to first?" Julio asked

"First, let's take care of the closest," Shun said. "This means, looks like we're off to the world of the Arabian Nights!" Sonic rubbed the ring, and Shahra appeared.

"Alright, Shahra, you know what to do!" Sonic said. "Take us to the world of the Arabian Nights!"

"Yes, Sonic!" Shahra started glowing, and the book on the table created a vortex.

"Hold on!" they both shouted as they were transported in a flash. Boy, Kato wished he could go with them. Pretty soon, the gang found themselves in an orange area with pages flying everywhere.

"Okay, so where to, Sonic?" Link asked, looking around. Sonic pointed to the Night Palace section, which had New listed beside it in glowing letters. Sonic opened the section, and he chose the line that said:

Special Mission: Get the Flame Ring!

"Alright! Let's go!" he touched the line with his ringed finger, and they were engulfed in a white light. Soon, they found themselves inside a large castle, at the very beginning of the level, according to Sonic. The level music was playing.

"Hey! Nice background music! I'm gonna put this on my sound recorder, then send it to my I-pod!" Tails said, pulling out a device. It recorded the whole song before it even finished. They then started walking. Soon, they reached a section where the pathway became a balcony. There was another narrow path, but it was far away.

"Great! How are we supposed to get across?!" Dan yelled, frustrated.

"Everyone form four lines! One behind me, one behind Speedy, one behind Tails, and behind Shun!" Sonic said. They did as instructed.

"Why am I in the front?" Shun asked.

"You can use your wind powers to carry them. Oh! Sara, we need you to go with one of us ahead. You can use your psychokinesis to carry others across the gap. So, you're the second in one of the lines. Sara nodded in understanding, and she got behind Sonic. Speedy, Tails, and Sonic used their super speed and carried the others across. Sara stood waiting for Shun.

"Ventus! By the power of the Ventus Guardian! Warp Dash Gust!" A sudden gust of wind made Shun go as fast as Sonic when he did his Warp Dash. However, he noticed that Julie, Dan, and R.O.B. were about to slip. "Uh oh," he muttered. Sonic turned to Sara.

"Now!" he shouted. Sara saw that three were about to fall. Shun was surprised that Sonic heard him mutter so quietly. He was going to shout 'Houston, we have a problem!', but never mind that. Sara quickly focused and spread her arms out, closing her eyes. She opened them and activated her powers. The three were enveloped in a blue aura, and they were brought over. Shun landed on the platform with the others. They were all safe, and they were ready to traverse the very narrow paths next.

"I can't sidle up against the wall that well! How do we all get across this place?!" Dan groaned.

"Don't worry! I got this one. I don't know why I didn't think of this sooner..." Runo said. "Haos! By the power of the Haos Guardian! Angel Path!" A golden, shining walkway formed from the edge of the platform and it attached itself to the second balcony. A third walkway that connected the second and third balconies also appeared.

"Yeah, Runo, why didn't you think of that? Or were you hoping I'd trip?" Dan teased.

"Shut up..." Runo replied in a monotone. They then started walking along the sturdy path. It was rather pleasing to walk along light. They then reached the third platform, which was actually a long path. As they walked, they saw that the final part had two mines that went back and forth. Once they approached them, they walked carefully through the middle to avoid being hit.

"You mean to tell me that you have done all this before?" Speedy asked Sonic.

"Yep! Just a normal, everyday thing for me! Strange worlds, dangerous traps, defeating Eggman, and just about everything complicated is a routine for me." Speedy was completely amazed at how brave his younger brother was. But then again, he was raised differently. That might have had something to do with it.

"I see. Boy, I'm glad I didn't have to live the way you did. I don't think I could've handled it." Sonic then started walking ahead.

"Well, get ready, because you're about to!" Sonic said excitedly. He then did a homing attack and he hit a spring. The others soon jumped on as well.

"Whoa! Totally cool!" Marucho said, flying through the air as they headed for what looked like a stone gazebo. Klaus marveled at the marble floor of it. Once they landed, Sonic and Tails did Homing attacks on the evil genies. Dan used his Pyrus powers to fry the other genies around the dome. Link used his Gale Boomerang to gather other enemies so that R.O.B. could blast them. Speedy just stood and watched the explosions. After about a few minutes, they then proceeded to the next wall. It was a lot easier. Then, Sonic and Tails did Homing Attacks galore on the chain of genies. It didn't take long.

"Whoo! Too easy!" Sonic said, doing a break dance, finishing up with a thumbs up. The next room was amazing.

"Wow! So, where to?" Joe said.

"Up there. Come on. Then after this, we're up for a walk on the air!" Sonic exclaimed. The others were confused, but they followed anyway. As they walked up the stairs, they saw it led around in a half rectangle, leading to the other side. Before they reached the end, they realized the balcony was the end.

"Uh, Sonic, I thought you said we were going for a walk on the air. What the heck do you mean?" Ganondorf asked.

"I'll show you!" Sonic ran to the edge, and then he jumped off!

"What the?!" was the thing everyone yelled. Suddenly, they saw Sonic floating through the air! On a magic carpet, nonetheless! This was sure something. Speedy and Amy were the most relieved. They looked down, and there was another! One at a time, they jumped down. When one carpet took off, another appeared! Soon, everyone was riding the carpets through the refreshing breeze.

"Hey, Sonic, is this a difficult part of the level?" Link asked.

"Nope! It gets a bit harder not too far from here!"

"I sure hope it's not almost impossible!" Dan yelled to him.

"I just hope we make it to the end of this place alive!" Runo said, holding on to the carpet for dear life.

"Watch out for the mines that are ahead!" Tails yelled. This snapped Runo to attention, and she started screaming as she dodged them.

"EEEK!" Runo was probably the loudest person on the carpet ride.

"Hey, chill! They're just spiky spheres! Chill, Runo!" Amy yelled to her.

"Easy for you to say!" Finally, they dodged them. Soon, they were headed toward some flame shooting genies.

"I can take care of these guys! Darkus!" Masquerade yelled. Exedra knew what was coming. "By the power of the Darkus Guardian! Shadow....Sword!" The nearby shadows came together and formed a black and purple sword. He started throwing it like a boomerang, and it hit every genie that was in the way.

"Nice job, Masquerade!" Kirby squealed. The next part seemed like the end of the castle.

"Alright! We're near the end!" said an excited Dammy.

"No, not quite!" Shahra exclaimed. They got off, and they started running. Soon, an eerie feel came into the room. They looked straight ahead, and the room started stretching! Dan was almost paralyzed with shock. Strange stone gates appeared, and the middle collapsed, causing a blockade.

"Great! How do we get past here?!" Dan yelled in confusion. He noticed that purple vortexes were in the front of each.

"Hey! Are those...black holes?" Meta Knight asked. "Hey! Sonic, what the bleep are you doing?!" The others watched as sonic jumped right into it!

"Come on you guys!" he hollered as he went in. The others just stood there, open-mouthed.

"Well...?" asked Tigrerra. "What do you think, Milady?"

"This is Sonic we're talking about. I'm sure he knows what he's doing. Let's go." Everyone nodded, and they ran into the vortex. What they saw next was beyond words. The next area was made completely of glass!

"Oh my gosh! It's beautiful!" Julie squealed.

"Told ya there was nothing to worry about!" said Sonic, who was sitting there, arms behind his head. "That purple thing is actually a portal. There are a lot of them to go through until we can get to the throne room. That's where the Flame Ring is."

"Great! Let's move!" Amy said. They began running along.

"Gravity gets a little weird here, so be careful!" They began running along a spiraling walkway.

"This reminds me of the Reverse World!" Pikachu hollered as he ran through the second loop. They ran through, dodging any enemies. At the end, they saw a weird hourglass. When Sonic hit it, they found themselves in a room filled with a red gas.

"Don't breathe it in! It'll make you weak!" Sonic yelled. Shun activated his Ventus powers, and began spinning. Soon, he kicked up a green tornado that sucked it in! He jumped out, and he pushed it to the edge, making the gas spill over the sides.

"Awesome, Shun!" Alice exclaimed, hugging him. Soon, they reached a door. Sonic brought out the seven World Rings, and he placed them on the door. They opened it, and there was the throne, harboring a giant ring that was more like a bracelet. Sonic placed it on, and they were transported back to the orange tunnel. Shahra led the gang back to the real world.

"Whoo-hoo! That was awesome!" Dan said, sweating like crazy. They had quite the workout.

"Excuse me, Master Marucho, but we have arrived near the forest."

"Thanks, Kato!" Marucho said gleefully. They hopped off, and they began to explore. Link found his crossbow, and they began walking back. However, a loud noise stopped them.

"Boop, baring, ha!" said a high-pitched voice that was coming towards them. They looked up and saw a green object falling at breakneck pace! They cleared out of the way, and they were amazed to see a weird, green dragon standing there. It was very stout.

"Holy cow! It's-a, it's-a Yoshi!" Mario said. (Tadaa! Here's smasher 17! Yoshi!) Yoshi stood up and yawned.

"Oh! Hi, guys! I thought for some reason you were total strangers!" Yoshi turned to see Mario. "Mario!" he said, tackling him.

"Can't-a breathe, Yoshi..." Yoshi scratched his head, and he stood up.

"What are you doing here, Yoshi?" Sonic asked.

"I was just taking a nap on my island, when I found myself getting lighter. When I woke up, I was somehow on your world, on top of a tree! I couldn't see my island anywhere!"

"Think Metal could've shoved you off your island?" Dan asked.

"Don't know, Dan. But maybe! In the meantime, mind if I help you guys search for the power ups? After all, Sonic only has one more to go, and then it's all on the Pokemon!"

"Of course you can, buddy!" DK said, giving Yoshi a noogie.

"Hey! DK, stop it!" Yoshi said, squirming. He got out, and he shook each of the Brawlers hands. He also shook hands with Speedy. "It's nice to see al of you in person!" Soon, the birdbot came to Tails.

"Hey, Eggman, what's up?" Tails asked.

"Tails! Good news! I've done some research, and it turns out that due to the fact that the cores are not in Vestroia, the world fusion process has been slowed to about a sixth of its normal speed!"

"Really? That's great!"

"However, I must say it will be tougher to retrieve the Super Emeralds and Master Emeralds than we thought at first. It seems that the energy has created a system of eight force fields! I'm not sure how to negate them, but I'll keep researching! You do your part, and find those power-ups!"

"Got it! Continue surveying, Eggman!" Eggman nodded, and the birdbot continued to fly around. As they walked, Yoshi had explained a lot of things that put the others at ease. Master Hand and Crazy Hand had created a front of smashers to defend Smash World to prevent Shadow Bakugan Attacks. Also, they were prepared to save their worlds.

"I sure hope we can save them. I just wonder how," Julio said, grumbling.

"Perhaps if...Vestroia caused...this to...happen, then...maybe it...can also...save it...as well," Tentaclear replied in his robotic voice.

"Mayb...wait. Tentaclear, did you just say two words at a time without pausing?"

"I think...I did...wait I...did! I did!" Tentaclear cheered. Perhaps it wouldn't be long before he'd speak normally, after all. As they walked back to Wardington, they realized they had a lot to do pretty soon. Luckily, Sonic and Mario only had a few left. They walked back, and soon, they were all settled around Marucho's dining room table, chowing down. They were surprised when the Brawlers' parents were there, and also Shun's grandfather. Michael was there as well.

"Hey, Mom, Dad, what are you guys doing here?" Dan asked.

"Hey!" Runo greeted her parents.

"Grandfather? What's going on here?" Shun asked.

"Yeah, Father, this is unusual for you to be here..." Shiori said.

"Hey, guys!" Julie and Daisy cheered, running toward their parents.

"Hi, Grandfather!" Alice and Masquerade said. Marucho's parents motioned for them to come over towards them.

"Must be some parents' meeting..." Billy groaned. They all went over to the table as well. They all sat down, the Brawlers each having the same question on their minds.

"Well, Dan, the thing is, all of us but Michael here were contacted by Eggman, who explained the base of operations in Smash World, so we all thought we'd form on here, to help you guys search for the power-ups more quickly!" Dan's mom said cheerfully.

"Really? Awesome! So, Michael, why are you here?" Sonic asked.

"Isn't it obvious? I finally got all my stuff over here! I'm all settled in! And plus, we decided that our base will be in the computer lab right beside out new mansion!" Michael said.

"Alright! Score!" Alice and Masquerade said, giving each other a high-five.

"So, we thought we'd discuss this with your parents and Kato, if they'd like to help," Shun's grandfather explained.

"And, of course, we agreed without delay!" Shoko added.

"Wow! This is cool!" Marucho cheered. "So, where do we need to go next?"

"Well, the rest of my power ups are in the Mushroom Kingdom. Tails, try and get Peach on the camera." Tails was already speaking to Eggman, and the camera was hooked up to a large computer screen in the room. In a matter of minutes Princess Peach was on screen.

"Hi, Peach!" they said.

"Hello, everyone!" she said happily.

"Peach, we were wondering. Do you know if Mushroom Kingdom has caused any warp ripple yet? We need to get there to get Mario's final power ups," Dan explained.

"Well, not that I know of...wait. Yes! Just now! A strange ripple leading to the castle! It's in an oasis near Bakugan Valley! Better hurry over there! It's closing in just a minute!"

"Alice! Masquerade! You know what to do!"

"Right!" They held out their transporters, and they were gone in a flash. Michael was proud of his two grandkids. They got the hang of it pretty well.

"Okay, I'll be going now. I'm going to greet them in person, and try to defend the Mushroom Kingdom!" Peach explained.

"Thank you, Peach. Keep in touch."

"I will." She left, and Eggman went back on screen. Kia unplugged the birdbot, and it flew super fast, and it caught up to them, landing in Tails' lap.

"I guess those warp drives are useful after all!" Tails said. And so, they soon landed at the oasis. There was the ripple. It was already closing.

"Hurry! Jump in!" Mario said. They all did. They were ready for their next adventure.

**Okay! Now begins Mario's arc! Soon, that will be one more person with all their power-ups! And all of the other smashers in Smash World, and the Brawlers' parents are lending their support. Things are going to start getting interesting!**


	32. Mushroom Kingdom, Ho!

**Sorry I haven't update for a while. CURSE THE EVILS OF HONORS GEOMETRY!**

**A/N: Alright, party people! Time for chaohacker's Review Response!**

**CloneGirl: Is it just me, or do I tend to seriously bring out the fangirl side of you without even trying? I must be talented!**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Thank you very much for the list of power-ups for Mario! You even gave me some I never heard of! So, let's see, now for a list of Mario Power-ups that he needs:**

**Super Star (actually a Starman but like you said, to avoid confusion)**

**Cape Feather**

**Bowser Shroom**

**Tanuki/Tanooki Suit (could you describe that, please?)**

**Raccoon Leaf**

**Powerball Flower**

**Hammer Suit (describe that too, please?)**

**Blue Shell**

**Mega Mushroom**

**Mini Mushroom**

**Fire Flower**

**Firebrand Gloves**

**Wing Cap**

**Metal Cap**

**Power Carrot**

**Frog Suit**

**Rocket Nozzle**

**Turbo Nozzle**

**Okay, could you give me anymore that he needs so that I can make it more complete? Man, this is making Mario seem to have more power-ups to retrieve than the Pokemon! By the way, did you get that PM? If so, what do you think?**

**Dark Bunny: I know Fox is in SSBB, but he doesn't join the group. He plays a key role in the soon to come Smash World arc.**

**alxkend: GREAT IDEA! The portal could send out a blast of energy, and then Eggman could track it with his sophisticated technology! And that one portal would take them to wherever the disturbance would lie! Thanks!**

**Tzeveliniu: Thank you for your review for 1-14, 16 and 17. I greatly appreciate you being the second person to review every one of my chapters! Thank you!**

***************************************

"Hold on, you guys!" yelled Mario. The group was traveling through the Warp Zone, heading toward the Mushroom Kingdom. Once they landed, they saw that they were in front of the castle.

"Okay, Mario, so which power-ups of yours should we go for?" Alice asked.

"Well, I say, first, let's go inside the castle. A few of your power-ups are inside, aren't they?"

"Yes-a! Right this way!" Mario led them inside, and they sort of liked all the shining objects, especially Julie and Dammy. They were squealing like crazy.

"This is awesome! Oh my gosh I love this place! EEE!!" Julie squealed. Dammy marveled at the stained glass window. Mario gathered them at the center. It was then that Peach appeared.

"Hello, Peach," said the smashers.

"Hello there. Glad you could come. I'm here to help Mario find his power-ups. And also, I just had to meet you all in person!" she said, smiling.

"Great! We could use some other help!" Masquerade said.

"If you-a want ta see da Wing Cap world, come-a here!" Runo stepped forward, as well as Speedy. "Okey-dokey! Look-a up at da sun painting!" Mario and Runo did, and they were suddenly teleported! Speedy jumped back in surprise, but decided to be brave. He looked up, and he also disappeared. They suddenly found themselves in the sky!

"Whoa! Too cool!" shouted Runo. They were literally flying through the air. Speedy was kinda freaked out, but his Spin Dash allowed him to stay in the air until he landed on the platform nearby. Once Mario landed after gathering a few red coins, he went over and bumped a red box with his head. A strange cap with wings popped out, and Mario put it on. He was now flying! Runo had a thought buzzing through her head. 'Why the heck does he have two flying power-ups?'

"Whoa...there's no way I could do that." Mario was gathering the coins like an expert. Soon, he gathered them all, and a clear star appeared. The three walked to it and touched it at the same time, being slowly pulled to the ground outside the castle. They walked back in, which surprised the others. Mario showed them the Wing Cap, which made Alice ask the same question Runo had in her mind.

"Why do you have two flying power-ups?"

"Well-a, I actually have-a four. Da Wing Cap, da Flying Star, da Raccoon Leaf, and da Cape-a Feather." The others gaped at this.

"What?!" they all hollered.

"Why would you need each one?" Marucho asked.

"Well, this is just a guess, but I have reason to believe that the Flying Star only works in areas of low, non, or artificial gravity. The Cape Feather is just added onto his Cape, making it discrete. The Raccoon Leaf probably makes Mario look like a raccoon, so it's kinda of a slight camouflage. And, I think the Wing Cap is basically a natural gravity version on the Flying Star..." Speedy explained. Everyone, including Mario, had a thoughtful look on his or her face.

"Ya know-a, that could be true-a!" He then led them to a hallway nearby.

"Watch your step!" Dan said. Mario then motioned for them to go down a stairway that led to another place. They then had to go down a hallway that seemed to be strangely eerie. Christopher noticed goosebumps forming on his arms, and started quaking.

"Hey, you okay, Christopher?" Alice asked. Christopher shook his head.

"Why do I still have to be afraid of damp, dark places?" he whined. Being the gentle person she was, she let Christopher cling on to her arm as they walked. Shun smiled at Alice's kindness toward others. It was no wonder Christopher looked up to her as a big sister. Mario explained to them that some of the paintings in the mansion were actually portals that led to other areas in the Mushroom Kingdom.

"Alright-a! We're-a here!" Mario exclaimed, pushing a door. It seemed like a normal room, but a strange pool of a liquidized metallic substance threw the normality off.

"I take it that this pool is yet another portal," Joe said.

"It would seem so," said Lucario.

"Come on! I wanna see this place!" R.O.B. exclaimed. They all jumped in, and they ended up inside another dim area. It wasn't damp, but Christopher didn't like it anymore. Still clutching to her arm, they began to walk to an area that was separated by a gap. Mario did a long jump, while Shun and Chan-Lee ran along the wall. The others managed to jump across, but Alice couldn't jump with Christopher. So, Shun used his Ventus Powers to carry her over.

"Thanks, Shun!" she said. The group continued to walk, and they suddenly found themselves in a labyrinth that was filled with yellow gas. It made everyone choke.

"What...the heck...is this...stuff?!" Komba asked, choking. Shun pulled out his ninja cape and put the mouth cover over his face. The gas couldn't seep in. The others used the long cape to cover their faces as they walked. Then, Mario jumped off of a wall and into a door. This door led to an elevator that took them down. They uncovered their mouths and let out a long breath. They walked off the platform and strolled down the stone-like hill. They stood in awe of the lake it led to. Julie squealed yet again, but this time it was toward the friendly, blue plesiosaur circling a platform in the lake. Mario explained that the Vanishing Cap was essential to getting his next power up located in the castle. Then, they'd be off to explore the rest of the kingdom. He placed it on, and they swam to a metal gate. Using his Vanishing Cap, he slipped through and flipped a switch on the other side. They walked carefully through the lit, green hallway. Soon, another pool came in to view, and they jumped in quickly. They then found themselves inside a cave.

"I-a got da Shy Guys!" Mario said. He blasted fireballs at them, causing them to disappear. He then jumped the platforms and bumped the green box. Out popped the Metal Cap. He placed it on, sunk down into the water, and gathered the coins. Another clear star appeared. They all grabbed it, and they had completed the level. However, Mario negated it, and he gave them an easier way to out of the castle if they'd like going for a swim. They all agreed, and Mario jumped into the river without the Metal Cap. The current carried him out. The others followed. Soon, they landed in a small pool. They climbed out of it, and they found themselves in the moat. Using a conveniently placed ladder, they got out of the moat and started walking to the first area. The Mega Mushroom and Mini Mushroom could easily be found there.

"So, what's in this place?"

"Well-a, all eight of da zones have da two items I need, but it's-a easier to get dem here. Da two are da Mega Mushroom and da Mini Mushroom."

"Alright, let's go!" They walked to a strange place. It was filled with floating bricks, walking bombs, and all sorts of strange things. They then noticed that a flying red brick came overhead. Mario jumped and out popped a mushroom that was so small and blue that it was easily recognizable. Mario placed it in. They then strolled through until they found a house that looked like a mushroom. Walking in, Mario saw Toadsworth standing there with a large box above his head. Mario runs over and bumps it, causing a huge mushroom to pop out. It looked just like the house.

"Man, when you said it was a MEGA Mushroom, you weren't kidding!" Klaus said in awe. Mario nodded, and they continued on their way.

"So, how many power-ups of yours are here, and how many on Earth?" Juggernoid asked.

"Don't-a know, Juggernoid."

"Has anyone else felt a Vestroia-like energy pass through here?" Apollonir asked.

"Yeah. I have reason to believe that Vestroia is now starting to affect this world," said Ultimate Tigrerra.

"Hey! Look!" Marucho yelled. They suddenly found the whole kingdom being pulled to the point of breaking apart.

"Guys! Activate your Vestroia powers! Maybe we can stop the bad version of the fusing!" Dan hollered. He and the other five said their element names, and beams shot out toward the aura covering the sky. It stopped stretching, but then ended up being surrounded by a sphere. Tails' birdbot flew next to Dan.

"Dan! Great job! You saved the Mushroom Kingdom from being destroyed!" said Eggman. Peach was also grateful.

"Yes! Thank you!" Peach exclaimed.

"It was nothing," he said, smiling. Luigi was also there, huffing and puffing.

"Aw-a man! I-a missed all da action!" he sighed. He then ran back to the castle, with Peach just giggling at Mario's brother.

"Alright! But wait. What's with this sphere around the whole kingdom?" Link said. Eggman cleared his throat, signaling all attention toward him.

"Well, we have reason to believe that the spheres are some sort of space-time warp, which causes the worlds to fuse at a slower rate, and without trouble. Also, since Vestroia is only expanding instead of colliding with Earth like the last time, it isn't causing other abnormalities. It's only causing them in every world associated with the smashers."

"So, let's say we went to Shifting Sand Land before we fixed this problem, there would probably have been a flood like on our world five years ago? And our Guardian powers fixed it?" Julie asked intently. Daisy nodded. "Wow...."

"Would've thought these powers were so useful! I mean, we can control an element, boost our Bakugans' Gs, open a portal from Earth to Vestroia and vice versa, and stop worlds from fusing drastically!" Dan cheered.

"Wait a minute..." Sara began. "If you guys can open a Warp Zone to Vestroia and back, can't you also open a portal to any other world we need to go to?"

"Yes, but in the process, opening a Warp Zone ourselves would probably cause disastrous results to the world, since it's forced instead of natural, Sara," Marucho explained.

"Oh...man, my thinking cap _so_ needs repairs..." This made Marucho laugh a little.

"Hey...speaking of Gs, I think I still have something to do!" Christopher said, motioning toward Juggernoid. This made the Smashers nod.

"I'll challenge you!" Samus said.

"We will, too!" exclaimed Pikachu and Kirby.

"Really? Thanks, you guys!" Christopher beamed.

"I'll hold the cards!" Mewtwo said.

********Start Battle********

"Ready! Gate Card, set!" they both hollered.

"Bakugan, brawl! Frosch, stand!"

"Okay, Pikachu, you're up!" They each landed on their respective Gate Card. Their Bakupods activated.

_**New Battle recognized. Pikachu at 460 Gs. Frosch at 500 Gs.**_ (Yes, I'm changing things up a bit. This should make the dialogue a bit clearer.)

"Okay, Gate Card, set! Ability Card, activate! Dive Mirage!" Frosch said.

"Ooh, big mistake!" Pikachu hollered.

"Huh?!" Pikachu jumped into the air, and he did Thunder. However, he jumped out of its way to avoid the 10 G decrease. Instead, it headed right for Frosch who was right in the water he created.

"Here's the deal, Christopher! Thunder can be used in two ways! If I use it standing still, I may get a slight power decrease, but if I move, it's just 10 Gs less, but, it doesn't decrease my Gs at all! So, normally, it would cause a 90 G decrease on Frosch."

"So?" Christopher asked warily.

"Frosch is in water. And what happens to electricity in water?" he led on.

"Oh no..."

"That's right! A DOUBLED power decrease!" The Thunder hit the liquidized Gate Card.

_**Frosch power decrease of 180 Gs.**_

"You think that'll work, Pikachu? Take this! Ability Card, activate! Aqua Cyclone!"

_**200 Gs transferred from Pikachu to Frosch. Pikachu now at 260 Gs. Frosch at 520 Gs**_

"Grrrr...! Take this! Gate Card, set! Ability Card, activate! Rapid Haos! With this, I'll shoot in Kirby!" Mewtwo shouted. Kirby jumped on to join Pikachu.

_**Kirby enters battle at 550 Gs. Combined power level now at 810 Gs.**_

"Ha! I'll just activate this! Polygraph Divide!"

"I'll just stop you right there!" Kirby shouted. "Pikachu! Shoot an energy beam! Now!" Pikachu quickly obliged, even though he had no idea what the puffball was planning. Pikachu shot a Thunder blast, which Kirby sucked up! As soon as he did, he started...transforming!

"Wha...?" When Kirby stopped glowing, he looked...weird. He had green and yellow spikes protruding from his head. Electricity seemed to bounce along the spikes.

"Crash...Kirby!!" he hollered. Suddenly, he began to glow again. "Crash!!!" A wave of energy came out of Kirby and it KO'd Frosch in an instant.

"Frosch!"

"So, this is what it's like to watch a Brawl up close..." Peach gasped. Pikachu and Kirby jumped off the Gate Card.

"Alright, no more games! Gate Card, set! Bakugan, brawl! Juggernoid, stand!"

"Alright, Samus, get on there!" They both landed on Christopher's Gate Card.

_**New battle commenced. Samus at 550 Gs. Juggernoid at 480 Gs.**_

"Ability Card, activate! Depth Tornado!"

_**Juggernoid power increase of 100 Gs.**_

"I have no time for these games!" Mewtwo said. "Samus, wrap this round up!" Samus enveloped herself in a rainbow aura. Energy built up in her Arm Cannon, and she fired her Zero Laser at the large turtle Bakugan. He jumped out of the way, but the Gate Card was sacrificed. "Hm. A minor inconvenience."

_**Samus change to Zero Suit Samus. Power level retains normal.**_

This surprised everyone. Apparently, there were a lot of knacks to having all their powers.

"Alright! This is going swell!"

"Oh yeah? Look at the difference! 550 to 580! Beat that! Your Paralyzer and Plasma Whip are useless to cause damage!" Mewtwo held out a card.

"Item Card, activate! Assist Trophy!" A tall dome appeared in front of Samus. She opened it, and out popped Lyn. She ran around, trying to get a clear shot. However, Juggernoid was tucked safely in his shell. His blue spheres shot ice beams out as an attack. Unfortunately for Mewtwo, one shot Lyn, sending her back to Smash World.

"What?!" Samus yelled. Before either of them reacted, Juggernoid knocked Samus out and began to evolve! When he finished, Juggernoid was a lot different. The hexagons on his back became skinnier, he had blue spheres all around his shell, and his jaws were a lot bigger.

"Alright! Ultimate Juggernoid reporting for duty!" he hollered.

"Alright, you guys, we need to keep moving. Mario, is there one more power up you can find here?" Dan asked.

"Yes-a! It-s the Blue Shell!"

"Okay then. Guys, return your Gate Cards," Runo told them.

"Oh, alright..." they muttered. The Gate Cards returned, ending the battle.

********End Battle********

The group was carefully walking through the area Mario called World 1-2. They came across two blocks, which one was another flying one. Dan popped it open, and Mario's Blue Shell came out!

"Yes-a!" Then, Runo playfully knocked the second box open, and the Fire Flower was revealed! "Alright, Runo!" Mario cheered. He placed the two in his box, and they then headed a different way.

"Where are we going?" Skyress asked.

"According to Mario's map, we're approaching the Beanbean Kingdom."

"Beanbean? That's a dumb name," Dammy commented.

"But, it seems we need to head for a tree on the first island of an archipelago outside of the kingdom called Oho Oasis. The...Firebrand Gloves? Well, whatever they are, they're on a tree."

"What do they do, exactly?" Sonic asked.

"They-a boost my fire powers-a," Mario explained.

"Wait, if they boost your powers, then doesn't that mean they'd power up your Mario Finale?" Gorem asked.

"Yep!" The other Smashers shuddered at the thought of a more powerful Mario Finale. They were beginning to think he shouldn't keep them, but they could be useful in defeating Naga and his metallic companion. Soon, they reached the coastline, and the edge of Beanbean Kingdom. They got on the first island, and they searched vigorously for the gloves. Soon, Mario found them on a tree in the northwest corner. He removed his gloves and placed them on, while everyone else cheered. Mario then activated his Mario Finale. However, instead of shooting two large fireballs, the gloves produced two very, _very_ large...fire dragons!

"Wow!" everyone shouted. He cleared a path through the forest on the island, and they started strolling back through the island.

"Okay, next up, Delfino Plaza," said Klaus who now had possession of the map. Sirenoid seemed to be pleased. Mario had told them of the beautiful seaside paradise. It was just a short plane ride away from the Mushroom Kingdom. However, since the space-time sphere would just send them a bit farther into the Mushroom Kingdom, they had to bring the large place to them. So, the Guardians used their powers and combined it to Oho Oasis, making it a bit larger, but still bright and beautiful.

"So, what's here?" Komba asked.

"Well-a, F.L.U.D.D. here has three-a other nozzles. Da Hover Nozzle let's me hover in da air for a while. Da Turbo Nozzle let's me go really fast-a. And finally, da Rocket Nozzle shoots me high into da air."

"Wow! You have almost as many power-ups as one of the Pokemon do!" Marth commented.

"Yep. Most of them are in my worlds, but just a couple are on Earth."

"Speaking of Earth," said Eggman, who looked like he had outrun by a pack of raging rabid rhinos, "you guys have to come back quickly! Save your power-ups for later! Sonic's alternate Earth is colliding with your world! You guys got to stop it! It's beginning to morph the very planet!" They others looked at each other for a split second, and Alice warped them back. They were face to face with a huge danger. A planet sized world was beginning to disintegrate the very coastline invisibly! Using their powers, they stopped the fusion. However, reversal work needed to be done. First, Julie and the Subterra Bakugan had to push the other continent off. Then, using their powers, Marucho and the Aquos Bakugan pushed the other Earth's oceans back. Then, along with Dan and the Pyrus Bakugan, they began to morph the world into a large, slightly concave continent that was completely huge! It, plus the floating ocean and lakes, was too big to fit onto the planet. They nodded, and using great power that no mere mortal could summon, the Brawlers' parents watched in amazement as their children actually increased the size of the planet itself! Without bothering the continents' forms and sizes they came to know, they were pushed apart, and slightly higher. They had made enough room to make room for the larger continent, which sunk in and safely fused with their Earth. It was now just another continent.

"Wow...who...would've thought..." Dan wheezed as he collapsed from exhaustion.

"Yeah. We managed to actually increase the width of the entire ocean, and the continents are still the same distance apart as normal!" Marucho said, somehow not out of breath.

"I can...just imagine...the news lady...going nuts over this! She'll have mapmakers her in no time, making new globes, new maps, and new census," Runo said. As if on cue, they were there, cataloging everything. The people were quite dazed, but they quickly realized what was going on. Station Square appeared, and it had also fused to the new continent. Within about thirty minutes, it was all over the place. A new map, GPS software, and globe was issued to the world. Soon, everyone was up to date. The Brawlers and smashers had anime sweat drops on their heads at all the commotion. Runo was about to yell, but the commotion stopped. Sonic stood up.

"I'd better go see if everyone's alright," Sonic said. He zoomed away. The Brawlers waited, and Sonic came back after ten minutes, smiling.

"Well?" Tails asked.

"Everyone's fine. Heh! You should see the Professor! He's going nuts! He's going in his little plane, finding every book he can get his hands on to research this new Earth's continents! I swear, he never changes!" Sonic said.

"Yeah, that's Professor Pickle for you!" Tails laughed. Dan face faulted. Tails looked at him curiously. As soon as he recovered, he had a slightly contorted face.

"You mean...that there's a guy that has the name 'Pickle'?" Dan asked, shocked.

"Yep. And, coincidentally, he loves cucumber sandwiches..." Dan fell backwards, landing on his head anime style. He then spat out the dirt he got in his mouth. Then, as if he never saw it before, he asked Sonic a question.

"Hey, Sonic, what's with that silver bracelet with the blue sphere on it?" Shun slapped him.

"You mean you never noticed it until now?" he said in a huff. Dan glared at him.

"Not like YOU ever asked anything about it," Dan said back.

"...Touché..." Shun replied, unable to come back with a reply.

"Boy, for best friends, you two sure do tend to argue a bit!" Yoshi pointed. Dan and Shun smirked at that comment. It was true. But, they were usually short-lived. Sonic interrupted them.

"Well, this is actually a sort of necklace that my friend gave me. It was what he left behind when he returned to his home. He didn't actually wear it like this. It was actually a jewel that was like, infused to his chest. It has amazing power, but only when he has it," he explained.

"So, who is he?" Harpus asked.

"Well, did you notice the core of the planet, how there were two beings: a dragon and a golem?"

"Yeah! I saw them!" Dan replied.

"Well, those are two supernatural beings: Light Gaia and Dark Gaia," Sonic began. The others oohed at this and took a seat, ready to listen.

"According to writings known as the Gaia Manuscripts, once, every one million years, since the beginning of Earth's existence, the Chaos Emeralds' power is lost, and it becomes a beam of energy that releases the two. Dark Gaia emerges, and it rips the planet apart. Light Gaia then goes and revives the power of the Chaos Emeralds by placing them in the Gaia temples," Tails explained

"Seriously? Seven temples are connected to the Emeralds?" Sara asked. Sonic nodded, and then continued from where Tails stopped

"Once the Chaos Emeralds are revived, Light Gaia then summons them to form Gaia Colossus. He engages in battle with it, and he lays him to rest. Soon, he also falls back to slumber for another one million years. They have kept the cycle going for a long time."

"Wait. Why are you using 'he' for Light and 'it' for Dark?" Dan asked.

"Let me finish. You see, not too long ago, I fell victim to one of 'his'," he began, pointing to Eggman, "attacks. He took the Chaos Emeralds' energy from me, and created the werehog form. He then released Dark Gaia, in hopes of harnessing its energy. I was sent to Earth, where I met a small creature that looked like a small fox with a rabbit tail."

"Sounds cute!" Julie squealed.

"I guess. So, the poor guy was an amnesiac. I decided to accompany him until he regained his memory. We then learned about Dark Gaia, and we decided to stop him. I decided to give the guy a nickname. I called him Chip. So, we revived the Chaos Emeralds and put the planet together. By the fifth temple, Chip still didn't have his memory. However, that changed after we revived the Emerald. He was pulled into a painting." Sonic showed them a copy. It had a picture of long tentacles connected to a serpent. The second object was a small oval, but it was obvious that it was the two. "So, Chip came back out, and in a slightly different voice, he told me he remembered it all. We met out by the pier, and boy did I get a shocker. It turned out that Chip, this little fox thingy, was actually Light Gaia himself!" The others' mouths dropped to the sandy ground.

"Whoa! So that explains it! So, I take it that this bracelet is the one that Light Gaia wore?" Ganondorf said.

"Yep. If you don't believe me, ask Tails and Amy! They also befriended him!" They turned their heads to Tails and Amy, who nodded.

"Well, back to the point, congratulations, you all! That's one planet successfully fused!" Eggman cheered.

"Well, anyways, time-a to go back to my world-a. Still gotta get da other three nozzles!" Mario explained. They then went back to the Warp Zone to grab those. They then quickly got back to Delfino Plaza, where the nozzles lay in small boxes. Dan stomped on those, releasing them. He carried them over to Mario, who placed them in his box.

**Okay, so that's eight items down, several more to go. Have faith, loyal readers. Chapter 33 is coming!**


	33. More Mario Powers

**A/N: Alright! 33, and the chapter where Mario gets the rest of his power ups! But first, Review Response time!**

**alxkend: A little short, but thank you for the review!**

**starfoxfan: Well, I explained this to Dark Bunny, but I wasn't totally descriptive. You see, later on, all of the others worlds, the ones of the Smashers who aren't on Earth, are trying to fuse to Smash World. And so, all of the Smashers who are still there go to save their worlds. So, Fox, Falco, and Wolf will be in the story, but not until later.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Thank you for the descriptions, the P-Wings, Kuriboh's Shoe, and the Magic Music Box. And no, I don't need their descriptions.**

***************************

"Okay, so where to now, Mario? And how many power-ups do you still need?" Sonic asked.

"Let's-a see...*mumble, mutter, mumble*....twelve."

"Twelve? What are they?" Klaus asked.

"Let's see. I need da Super Star, da Cape Feather, da Bowser Shroom, da Tanooki Suit, da Raccoon Leaf, da Powerball Flower, da Hammer Suit, da Power Carrot, da Frog Suit, da P-Wings, da Kuriboh's Shoe, and da Magic Music Box."

"What's the Tanooki Suit?"

"It's-a basically like da Raccoon Leaf, but it allows me-a to become a monk statue for a bit. It's-a originated from da Tanuki, a..."

"Japanese mythological raccoon creature that could turn into a statue," Shun finished for him.

"Uh, yeah! So, where-a to?"

"Why don't we get your flying power-ups, starting with this Tanooki Suit?"

"Okay-a! Hey! Wait a minute-a! How come you-a get to hold da map, Klaus?"

"Because, you need to seriously pay attention to the contours. Don't want you falling down an abyss, do we?" he snickered. The Italian plumber rolled his eyes yet kept moving. A white mushroom house was nearby, but first, he bumped the box overhead, revealing a strange suit with raccoon ears and tail. It was the Tanooki Suit.

"So, Tanooki Suit, check." They then walked into the house, where Mario was given the P-Wings.

"Another flying power up?"

"At least these work in high altitudes!" according to Tails, who examined them. A grateful Mario placed them in the box. They went back out, and they saw a large group of enemies in a wall.

"Great! If we attack them, they'll just blow us up!" Zorano screeched. It was then that Dan noticed a strange box on a cloud above them.

"Is that the Magic Music Box, Mario?" Lars Lion asked.

"Yep!" Mario replied. Shun flew up, grabbed it, and brought it to him. Mario then turned it on, which caused the enemies to fall asleep so that they could get the others. They then approached the end of the Zone, so they went to the underwater Zone. Marucho used his Aquos Guardian powers and formed a bubble before they made splashdown so Sonic would be relieved. They silently floated around, while Mario kept a look out for the Frog Suit. It was on an enemy swimming through the area. Dan boiled that fish, and Mario got the power-up. Mario explained that it made him a bit sluggish on land, he had amazing speed underwater.

"Four down, eight to go. What's next?" Drago asked.

"Let's get the final three flying power-ups, the Kuriboh's Shoe, Raccoon Leaf, and Cape Feather" Alice suggested. And so, they hopped out of the tunnel, and they got to Tall Tall Mountain.

"According to this, the Raccoon Leaf is in a...caged garden?" Marucho said using Tails' holographic projector.

"Yeah. And, the Kuriboh's Shoe can be reached by using a cannon located on a mushroom. The Cape Feather can be found in Shifting Sand Land," Lucario said, looking at the map of the Mushroom Kingdom and surrounding lands. It was cool how the soldiers' mystic powers were able to pinpoint the exact location, but they sometimes didn't need it.

"Let's-a go!" Mario said. They went after the Kuriboh's Shoe first. Mario got onto the mushroom, but instead of using the cannon, he pulled out the P-Wings, strapped them on, and he flew to the area. After a few Wall Jumps, he reached the Kuriboh's Shoe. He then got back to the others, and they strolled up the mountainside.

"This place is rather drab..." Runo grumbled.

"Wait-a till you see da waterfall-a. It leads to-a da lake back there." Runo sighed at the thought of a waterfall. As they walked, Shun couldn't help but ask something to Dammy.

"Hey, Dammy?"

"Yeah, Shun?"

"I was just wondering. You don't usually act like most fangirls do, with all their squealing, hollering, and comments about their favorite person. Why not?"

"Well, mainly because I wasn't just some fangirl that liked him because he looks cool or talks tough. I love Masquerade in a much different way than a fangirl, plus, I don't lose it around them."

"I see. So, basically, you aren't just some fangirl to Masquerade, and when you were, you just know how to control your emotions."

"Ding!"

"So, are you a fangirl of anyone else?" Masquerade asked.

"Well, two people, actually. Jose from the show _Cybersix_, and Itachi from _Naruto_."

"Itachi?! But, that guy's evil!" Masquerade whispered.

"It can't be helped that the coolest looking men are or become evil. That's just the way it works! Like you for instance!" she said. "So, you should be at least a _little_ proud that you were evil and not so sad about it..." Masquerade nodded his head.

'Okay, that doesn't make total sense, but it makes some...' he thought. Dan rolled his eyes. They finally reached the garden, and Mario got the Raccoon Leaf. He rubbed it against his hat, giving his ears and a tail like a raccoon.

"That's a cute form!" Julie squealed. He put it back.

"Now, on to Shifting Sand Land!" Klaus said. They found the way to the next world, traversed through it, and ended up at their goal. This place was strange. It was full of quicksand, unbecoming of a desert. There were small, harmless tornadoes. Also, there was a shelter of rock, and a pyramid, meaning it was settled into before. It was hard trying to find it.

"I just don't get it, Komba! Klaus said it is just west of here, located in the sand, but I've dug here for hours! Are you sure this is the spot?" Harpus asked.

"I'm pretty sure, Harpus," Klaus informed her.

"Wait!" Mario hollered. "Da pyramid!"

"What of it?" Komba asked.

"It runs in a tunnel-a fashion below dis place. Let's a go!" Mario had them jumped into a tornado, where they were lifted into the air. They landed right outside the entrance. One by one, they jumped down and found themselves in a remarkably high tech place for its generation. Traps were everywhere. They had to be extremely careful.

"So, Dan, do you think we can manage to find wherever the Cape Feather is?" Drago asked. He just shrugged in response.

"Well, I hope so. This sand is getting in my new shoes!" Julie complained. Billy just laughed at her complaining.

"What's wrong Baku-babe?" Billy joked. Julie turned red.

"I told you not to call me that!"

"What's wrong with his pet name?" Sonic asked. Julie huffed.

"It's annoying is what's wrong!" Julie groaned.

"Yeah, well, you were too, five years ago!" Runo scoffed.

"You're just saying that because I was flirting with Dan at the time!" Julie said, sticking a finger at Runo's face. Runo flushed a bright red.

"Well, that was only part of it. You were always squealing so much it made my ears ring!" Julie made teary-eyes. Ignoring them, Runo continued. "Also, you complained quite a bit. But, besides that, you were okay." Julie cheered up. "But, even though you don't flirt or complain, you still squeal a lot."

"Excuse me, but remember the Lumas? You squealed too!" Julie shot back.

"At least I don't squeal over _everything_, girly-girl!"

"Idiotic tomboy!" Julie yelled. Ignoring their useless catfight, the others marched on. Dan and Billy made glances back to see if they were keeping up, which they were. They still argued.

"You know, Billy, I'm glad you ended up with Julie," Dan said. Billy cocked an eyebrow. "I'd take a bonk on the head over being hugged to death any day."

"Well, Julie doesn't hug me. She just did that 'cuz she was a fangirl towards you," Billy explained. "I don't think she actually, well, liked you, liked you. Know what I mean?"

"Yeah, I guess. It just surprises me that Dammy didn't go all Julie on Masquerade when she first saw him in person," Dan said. "Speaking of her, did you notice that huge smile on her face when she bonked me?"

"Yeah, yeah, I have a strangely sadistic side," Dammy said, smiling. Dan reeled back a few inches. "Don't worry, I won't hurt you. Unless you insult Masquerade again." Her smile became a threatening smirk which made Dan flush of all color. Masquerade couldn't help but listen.

'So, Dammy has a sadistic side, hm? This is bound to make things funny every now and then.' he thought, smiling in satisfaction.

"So, Sonic, after this, we're going for the Magic Hands, right?" Tails asked.

"Right. And, guess which move I've unlocked, making my Gs to 530?" Sonic bragged.

"530 already? Wow! Okay, let me think...um...Sonic Wind?"

"Bingo!" Sonic replied. Speedy never heard of that move.

"What does it do?" Speedy asked.

"Well, I can create a blue tornado that damages my enemies, basically," Sonic explained.

"I see. I wonder. If I were to become a Smasher, which most likely not, what moves would I have?"

"Probably the same as mine. Homing Attack, Spin Dash, Spin Charge, Spring Jump, and a Super form. But, what makes you think you won't?"

"Because of my fear of violence, most likely," Speedy said. Sonic had a solemn look on his face.

"Oh, yeah. I probably would've felt the same way if I was old enough to have that memory. It must still be pretty engraved in your mind," he sighed.

"Honestly, I didn't think I would've broken down like that when I told you and your friends. The memory is still so horrifying, it refuses to leave..."

"It's probably for the best. I can see why you never felt like talking about it to the Brawlers' parents when they heard. It would've been déjà vu all over again, huh?" Speedy bit his lip, recalling everything. "Oh, sorry. You know, I'm surprised. Mother and Father must've raised you strictly for you to never insult anyone, and to have never held a grudge against that worm," Sonic said, stomping the ground.

"As I was taught, what was done was done. Besides, they're not totally gone... Hey, wait. Is that it, Mario?" Speedy said, looking at something glistening in a cage. Mario looked up.

"That's a-it! Good eye!" Using his Cape, he blew it down. He placed the shining feather in his box.

"So, where to next?" Shun asked. Mario gave a thoughtful look.

"Well-a, how's about we go-a get da Bowser Shroom?" he asked. They nodded, and they headed for a tunnel leading back to Peach's Castle. Once back, they headed down the stairs again, but took a right into a door with a Power Star on it. They walked in. It front of them was a small platform with a tunnel in it. At the end was a portal that looked like water.

"Alright, so where do we go from here?" Meta Knight asked.

"I think we need to go down the tunnel, right, Chan?"

"According to this map, that's a yes," she replied. They all jumped down. They ended up in some lava filled area with floating platforms.

"What the heck is this place?" Marth asked.

"This is the second boss area. The Bowser Shroom is close by. Dan, swim over to that platform over there, if you can," Link said. Dan dived into the lava, swimming through as if it was nothing. They were amazed at his powers. In a few minutes, he reached the platform, tossed the Bowser Shroom, and Mario caught it instantly. Dan came back quickly.

"Thanks-a, Dan!" Mario said. Dan did his signature nose flick (don't ask me why he still does that). And so, they left to get the final four.

"So, are we going to find the Super Star next?" Marucho said, adjusting his glasses. Mario nodded. It wasn't hard to find. They just had to go find another floating box and be lucky. So, they traveled for five minutes in a grassy area filled with Bob-ombs. He found a box, popped it open, and a yellow star that flashed rainbow colors at times came out. He placed it in the box. Soon, they were on their way to find some Item called the Powerball Flower.

"So, what does the Powerball Flower do?" Lucario asked.

"Well-a, it gives me an item called da Powerball, and it collects any rings I manage to hit with it. It may-a not have da same affect in a brawl."

"Interesting," Mewtwo said. They found the exit and jumped out. They were back at the portal to the lava world. According to Mario, it was just outside the castle in a garden. So, they went out into the small backyard. There were many flowers abound, but also Boos. Mario took care of them easily by running to their backs and kicking them.

"I think it says that the flower is in the giant flower section, over that way," Pikachu said. Mario went over to the foot high flowers, and he found it in a matter of minutes.

"Aha! Got it!" he cheered. Going back to the others, he had to take care of a few Boos that suddenly appeared.

"Heh! Took you long enough!" Bowser teased. Mario took out his cape, took it by the ends, rolled it up, and rat-tailed Bowser on the belly. "Ow! That hurt!" He clamped his stomach. "Hey, nice shot! Dead center of the belly!"

"Actually, I missed. I brought the angle up too high..." Bowser's yellow face became pale. Kirby laughed at Bowser.

"How'd you like to be hit there?!" Bowser snapped. Kirby was now white.

"Hey, Kirby, I got something that'll take your mind off of that!" Sonic said. "Here! Your favorite taco!" He held it above him, and Kirby became a bright yellow, which meant he was very happy.

"What's with Kirby?" Runo asked.

"Well, Kirby here, like a chameleon, changes color depending on his state. Red is embarrassed, yellow is really happy, white is scared, green is sick, and his normal color means he's...just normal," Meta Knight explained.

"Weird," Julio said.

"So, I take it we're going..." R.O.B began.

"To find the Power Carrot," Klaus finished. "Then, the only one left is the Hammer Suit, right?" Mario nodded. They went back inside.

"Okay-a. Da Power Carrot is in-a Little-Big Isle. Come on-a!" They ran back through the doors into the foyer, and then went up the stairs into a circular room. It surrounded a tower that lead higher. They kept looking around until they found a door. Inside were three paintings.

"Okay, now what?" Yoshi asked.

"Well-a, two of da paintings are portals. Da one in front of us is just a painting. And, actually, da one to da right is huge. Da one to da left is smaller. Da mirror above us-a makes an optical illusion. Let's-a go to the Small Isle first-a!" Mario ran to the painting on the left, and so did they. Indeed, it was a smaller hallway. Mario jumped in, revealing it was a portal. The others jumped in to find themselves on a _very_ small island.

"Dang, this place IS small!" Dan said. Mario jumped over to a pipe, and the others followed. They jumped in, and they found themselves on a much bigger island. Mario told them that the two were kinda like parallel places of different sizes that were connected to each other. They then got to the top of Big Isle, and Mario dived into the water to get the water out. He pulled a huge plug out of the wall, and the water seeped into the garden below. The soil washed away to reveal a healthy, bright orange carrot. Mario immediately put it in the box. The final power-up known at the moment, the Hammer Suit, was located on Rainbow Ride. They exited the stage and ended up at the entrance. Going up the stairs, they saw two white platforms glowing brightly.

"Okay, so where to from here?" Link asked. Mario pointed to the white platform, which was more like an impression in the wall, to the right.

"Haos! By the Power of the Haos Guardian! Rainbow Ramp!" A rainbow colored incline appeared, allowing them to walk up into the box. In the center was a small hole. They jumped in and entered the Rainbow Ride course.

"Wow! We're really high up!" Shun exclaimed. They got on the flying carpet and were taken along a rainbow.

"Wow! This place is amazing! I love rainbows!" Julie squealed.

"See? Girly-girl, like I said!" Runo complained.

"Could you girls just focus on something else other than each other's personalities?" Amy groaned.

"Fine..." they grumbled.

"Boy, and I thought YOU were annoying when you were a fangirl..." Sonic grumbled. Amy wrapped her arm around his, making him blush.

"Is this the time to share a moment, you two?" Dan grumbled.

"I was just teasing him, geez. You are WAY too focused on things. Relax a little!" Amy retorted. They then ended up inside a huge maze. The Hammer Suit was here, according to Mario. They searched high and low until they found it in a difficult spot to reach. Luckily, Mario managed to do a back-flip to get in that tight spot. He placed it in his power-up box. That was the difference between the people who had power-ups. Mario's were items he didn't wear constantly, Sonic's were in him or on him at all times, Samus' were part of her suit, and the Pokemons' were moves they learned. Talk about different.

"Alright, guys, we got all of Mario's, and it's getting late. What say we go home and take a nap, and then tomorrow we can search for Sonic's last power-up and the Pokemons'?" Marucho asked.

"Definitely. I feel like I haven't slept in days, even though I did last night," Tails said. They went back to Earth, and the Warp Zone stayed open. They went back to Marucho's house where everyone was. Joe's mom had gotten there while they were gone. They said good night, and they rested up for a whole new day."

**Okay, that's all of the Mario power-ups I know for the moment. The Pokemon's will take a while. Since I'm trying to make a realistic timeline, the next few chapters may be quite a bit shorter. Hope you like them all the same!**


	34. Magic Hands Retrieval and FanFiction!

**A/N: Review Response time!**

**alxkend: Yet again, you show your enthusiasm in short yet to the point reviews. Nice.**

**CloneGirl: I know that you yourself are a major fangirl, but I just made Dammy calmer when they met so that the pairing would come together more easily. I mean, when was the last time a fangirl/idol relationship develop? Don't worry; I'll make Dammy have a fangirl moment...later. And, thanks for the compliment about me having fun typing Dammy! But, thanks go to you. You did give me a pretty descriptive personality!**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Thank you for your compliments. And yes, Speedy will definitely have a Super form. I mean, how could he go Hyper in Chapter 21 but not Super? Right? As for the Blaster upgrades, that sounds like a great idea! Also, about that part about Mario saying the Powerball got rings, that was a slight typo. Sorry. Sol Sonic sounds like an interesting idea, and so does Blaze showing up. I think I might even have Silver appear once or twice.**

****************

It was a whole new day on Earth. It had been a long two weeks since the Smashers came (that's probably not how the actual story timeline has gone but, just, bear with me on this, okay?). They knew that it wouldn't be long until the day they'd finish this whole mess. They had woken up in the living room, ready to plan their newest journey. Masquerade, being an early riser, was using a laptop, going on to the internet. He was searching around, when he got an e-mail describing a website. He checked it out, and he was greatly interested. Dan tried talking to him, but there was no response.

"What the heck are you looking at, Masquerade?" Dan asked. It was then that the blonde turned.

"You have got to check this out! There's this cool website called . It's awesome! You can basically make a story that involves characters from a book, anime, cartoons, movies, games, etc...And you can read stories made by other people! There are some good ones! However, there are some weird ones. Especially some of these romance ones. I'm talking breaking the boundaries of strange." He was currently on the Naruto Archive.

"Really? Give me some examples," Dammy said.

"Well, check out the ones listed under romance, and then look at the two names under the summaries..." Dammy did so, and indeed, there were strange pairings. Her gaze became heated at one particular one.

"What? They have a....oh no they did NOT just do a pairing like THAT for Itachi! Oh! Oh-ho no they didn't!" She was growling like a maniac (can you guess what pairing was mentioned? I've seen these before on fanfic. CloneGirl, if you know what Itachi pairing I'm referring to, I bet you REALLY hate it!). Masquerade then went onto the Bakugan Archive.

"Hey, here's a good one! Bakugan Smashers (ha ha! I'm having Masquerade read Bakugan Smashers in Bakugan Smashers!). It's kinda like the journey we're on now. Smashers entering our world. I'm gonna check it out!" He began reading. A strange sense came over him.

"What is it, Maskerado-kun?" Dammy asked.

"This is so déjà vu," he said, finishing Chapter 4.

"Hm?" Dan asked.

"Here, come read this." Dan scrolled up and read Chapter 4. It was titled: The First Journey. As he read it, he got the same feeling.

"I think someone is stalking us and recording everything. What's weird is that this guy knows what we're thinking. Is he a wizard or something?" Dan said. He read the story to the others, and it was _exactly_ what happened. Masquerade then read the rest, and he was particularly interested when he returned in Chapter 12.

"So, you took over a doctor, Exedra?" he asked the reading sphere.

"Yep." Masquerade turned his head back. Once at Chapter 16, he realized just how calm Dammy indeed was. Then, at the end of Chapter 17, he was quite shocked.

"Was...I really that...emotional?" At the beginning of 18, he was almost in disbelief. "Oh, great. I'm a softy. That's super..." he said sarcastically. Exedra felt bad that everyone who read that probably felt the same way.

"Huh? What are you talking about? Move over," Dammy said. She read Chapter 17 and 18. "*sniff* Saaaad!" She blew her nose on a tissue, and Alice walked over.

"What? What's Chapter 17 about? Masquerade Learns the Truth. Oh....that day... No, you were no softy. Heck, you took that better than I thought!" Alice said encouragingly.

"Yeah, I guess. Okay, move over. I have more reading to do!" He bumped them out of the way, but gently as to not be too rude. "Wow, this guy is really descriptive in stuff, but not so much in other parts. Adds variety! Nice!" He managed to read the whole story in just about an hour and a half. Dan then checked out the so far 99 reviews.

"Hey, this is weird. For some reason, Dammy, this girl who's penname is CloneGirl claims ownership over you..."

"Huh? What do you mean?" Dammy asked.

"And she has everything about you down. Your physical description, your bubbly and charismatic personality, your sadistic side, everything!"

"Freaky!"

"Yeah! And this CloneGirl talks about me and you the most! Apparently, she's a fangirl of me. And you know what? I bet everything we've said will show up sooner or later. Talk about freaky," Masquerade said.

"You know, this is giving me an idea! We should make a fanfic or something while we aren't preoccupied!" Marucho said.

"Maybe. But, speaking of books, we really need to work on something... I have a feeling that people who didn't know about Bakugan would like to know a lot about it, so we should make a book about Bakugan and stuff about our adventures!" Dan suggested. Everyone's head turned to Dan.

"It's about time that bloated head forged a good idea!" Shun joked. Dan pouted, but he knew his best friend since who knows how long was only joking.

"Okay, but first, since there's nothing else to do, and it's only 8:00 of like, day 15 of this new journey already, why don't we take most of the day off, and near the end of the day we can get the Magic Hands power up for Sonic!" Julie said.

"Yeah, but first, let's get some breakfast! After that, I'm going to go for my morning run," Sonic said. Kato's face appeared on the monitor.

"Breakfast is ready, you all. Master Marucho, please escort everyone to the extended dining hall."

"Okay, Kato!" Marucho said. They walked to a HUGE room with 38 seats, and they each took one. Shoko and Kia were not in the room with them, probably over at Michael's new house. They planned to go there soon. It was supposedly huge and high tech, but the outside would look like a mansion. Well, they'd find out after breakfast!

"So, what are we having?" Samus asked.

"If I'm not mistaken, it's...biscuits and gravy!" Marucho said, looking at the virtual menu. Everyone cheered. For once, Kirby was polite enough to suck up only his plate. He spat the plate out, and it was clean as a whistle. Marucho was curious as to where all that food went, but he wasn't determined to find out. Kato delivered the flaky, hearty biscuits with gourmet gravy and fresh ground pepper. It was a little on the spicy side, but not too hot. Everyone had two large helpings.

"Boy, Kato is a great chef!" Sonic said, patting his bloated stomach.

"You sure do eat quite a bit, Sonic," said Speedy. Sonic laughed at that comment. He wondered what their parents would think of his behavior now that he was around others, but he felt they didn't care if he changed a little bit. He then stretched.

"Well, I'm gonna go for my morning run. Be back in a bit!" He ran off quickly, and the others just went around. Pikachu was practicing his Thunder accuracy for an upcoming gym battle. He had explained its fundamentals to Speedy. It seemed a lot like a Bakugan Brawl without cards. Just moves and an open field. Nothing much to it, except that they can get knocked out. It seemed interesting, but it was also a bit more dangerous and painful, and that was a dislike for Speedy. Soon, at became 9:00 and Sonic had been back for 15 minutes. They then began walking to Michael's new house. According to Alice, it was simply amazing. No one could wait, especially Masquerade. He ran faster than the others. He had to be going at least ten mph while the others were going seven. The others who could go fast were taking it slow.

"How...are you...so fast...when you never....had gym class?!" Alice gasped. Shun picked her up and ran at ninja speed, which was like 15 mph or so.

"Think you're going to get there first? Not with my new technique I learned last night! Darkus! By the power of the Darkus Guardian! Shadow Warp!" His body became black, and he sunk into his shadow, allowing him to warp to any shadow nearby. He ended up coming out of a shadow 100 feet in front of Shun, and he kept running. He got to Michael's first.

"Cheater. Warping like that..." Shun muttered.

"Jealous?" he teased. Shun grumbled, and he followed Masquerade in.

"Ahh...just like a ninja..." Dammy sighed.

"Fangirl..." Christopher grumbled. Dammy would've hit him, but Christopher wasn't on her list of annoyances. There was only ONE person on that list, and he was Dan. But, that was only because he made so much fun of him five years ago. If he learned to not to, she _might_ take him off, but she didn't see that happening soon. They stepped inside. Michael's new lab lacked the Dimensional Transport System, since it was perfected, but in it s place was a cemented picture frame that had a patent placed inside. Alice's smile grew larger each second. Michael stepped from the corner.

"You like?" he asked. Alice hugged him happily.

"This is great, Grandfather! You should be proud!" Masquerade said. Alice nodded in approval. The lab was now just filled with computers and such, making it seem more like a base of the Navy or the Marines. There was a test tube center in the back along with many books on theories, but mainly, Michael didn't have anything planned for a new invention. He didn't want any other accidents like the last one to end up occurring.

"So, Michael, what has Master Hand found out so far?" Mewtwo asked. Michael gestured them to follow him. They were led into a large room with stairs. On the window were Master Hand and Crazy Hand. The Brawlers' parents were there. They waved and continued communicating.

"Well," Michael said, taking a seat, "we've found out only one thing. Due to the Chaos Emeralds, Vestroia is only expanding to the Smashers' worlds before Earth, and the only thing we can do is keep them from fusing by colliding. Also, if the worlds fuse naturally, that means they will not collapse on each other. Finally, once all of the worlds are saved, it seems, unlike last time, they will stay instead of going back to were they were. As in, the Smashers will be remaining here on Earth." They all cheered.

"That's great! The Smashers get to stay here! But, what about the Bakugan?" Dan said.

"We're researching that now, but it seems that the same condition for Smash World will apply. So, the Bakugan will be staying as well," said Joe's mom. She already had a knack for this communication and research thing. The Brawlers were cheering like crazy.

"Also, something else has come up," Runo's dad said. "Seems like all the Warp Zones are converging into one portal that branches out to any world Vestroia expands to!"

"So, are you saying that we just have to go into _one_ portal to get from place to place?" Runo asked her father. He nodded with 100% certainty.

"That's interesting. So, what's the status on Vestroia's expansion?" Michael asked.

"It seems that Mute City is its next target. It'll reach there in four days!"

"Mute City? Isn't that your home world, CF?" Mario asked. He nodded.

"But, that's not for four days, so you have plenty of time to focus on getting your power-ups."

"Yeah, plenty. Well, until then, we should plan out a lot, and then go looking for your Magic Hands, huh Sonic?"

"According to the map, it's in a highly protected yet abandoned army base. Seems to me like you could use your Ancient Light for once!"

"What does that move do, anyway?" Tigrerra asked.

"Well, you know how these Light Shoes make move at light speed along a path of rings? Well, just imagine me doing that along a path of enemies!" Sonic smirked. Everyone but Shun oohed at that. He just smirked.

"Pretty cool!" Shun said. Sonic nodded. "So, what time should we go to see this move the best?"

"How about 9:00, that way its dark out? Supposed to be a bright moon tonight!" Marucho said.

"Speaking of which, Speedy, bright light makes your fur white and your stripes blue. What does a harvest moon do?" Sonic asked. Speedy could feel his cheeks flare slightly. He didn't like what he was about to tell them. 'Must be an embarrassing color combo...'

"M...magenta and periwinkle...." he whispered in a grumbling manner. He blushed even more. Sonic, Tails, Amy, and the Pokemon heard him, though. Sonic gripped his sides and he laughed hysterically.

"You...you got to be kidding!" Pikachu laughed. "Ma..." Speedy made a _SSHH!_ sign, but to no avail. "Magenta and periwinkle!?" Speedy's face was now pure red, as the others were chuckling.

"It's not that funny..." he whispered.

"Well, after you guys get all your power-ups, we _really_ need to practice, just in case your moves gain different effects," Runo explained.

"Yeah, you're right. Can't wait till that day!"

"Okay, so, let's get planning, and then tomorrow, we can start making that book!" Dan said. And so, they talked and ate and talked and ate and talked. Soon, it was 7:45.

"Okay, you guys, let's go! To Marucho's house and the plane!" Sonic shouted in a dramatic manner that everyone groaned at. Even Speedy had to admit it was too dramatic. They walked to Marucho's large private jet (guess I forgot to mention that Marucho's new plane/submarine is much, _much_ larger than the one in BBB, considering it needs to hold 38 people instead of 6 to 8). They climbed aboard. It would take a while. Sonic could've run the way there, but he would've had to wait for the others, as on several occasions. They all wanted to explore together. They went to their individual rooms on the plane since it would take an hour and 15 minutes to get there.

"Why did I never install this thing with auto-pilot...?" Kato muttered as he flew the giant aircraft. Meanwhile, Speedy had drifted off to sleep, which Sonic was pacing around. Dan was talking strategies to Drago and Apollonir. Runo was experimenting with her blue hair, Marucho was talking science stuff with Michael, and the others were doing stuff they did.

"GAH!" was the sound that made everyone jump. Apparently, Speedy had a nightmare, so Sonic went in to check. The others settled down as Sonic started talking to him. Apparently, it was a memory of the horrible 15 year old event. Dan punched his palm with excitement as he noticed they were approaching the base. Speedy and Sonic came out at that time, and they sat at the table for a snack. Pizza bagels were eaten as if they were going out of fashion, and they landed as they finished. Soon, they walked inside with full bellies. The base was void of alarms, but security robots were abound. Soon, the room with the Magic Hands came into view. Strangely, at the end of the chain of robots, the only thing there was a green orb of energy.

"So, let's do this!" Sonic said, charging up his Spin Dash. However, this time, small orbs started floating toward him. As he charged, it made a whirring sound most unlike it. It must've been the orbs of light. Was this his Ancient Light move? Soon, Sonic stood up, orbs floating around him going upwards. He got close to a robot, who charged a laser, and before a word could be said, the robots were destroyed at the speed of light. He touched the orb, and his gloves became glowing white. He jumped down to show them. However, the fun was just beginning. A giant robot, along with other robots and a robot producing machine, appeared out of nowhere.

"Intruders! Multiple intruders detected! Commencing Attack Sequence!" It charged up lasers.

"You can't Spin Dash through that thing, and it's covered in diamond fibers! We can't do anything!" Christopher freaked. Sonic got an idea.

"Well, since the smaller ones are also diamond covered, it's time to put Magic Hands to work!" A robot appeared, and Sonic held out his hands. The drone was trapped in a sphere of white light, and he threw it at the giant robot cracking a dome on its leg. He repeated the process on the other leg, toppling it. The back was also covered. Sonic had to hit the robot twice in the chest and twice in the back to open the core, which he Spin Dashed into. Quickly and stealthily, he got out of the robot and got everyone out of the base before the giant robot self-destructed and blew up the whole base, plus a five meter radius away. The plane was only 20 feet away, so the blast was almost right in front of it. Kato was almost shell-shocked by the blast. Quickly, they climbed on and exhausted, went to sleep. Luckily, they all woke up when they landed. They retired to their rooms. Tomorrow they'd be getting Pikachu's power-ups.

**Like I said, it's a bit shorter. But at least I had more long paragraphs instead of mostly speaking! So, Sonic's arc is complete! Nice!**


	35. Pikachu Power!

**A/N: Oh man! I haven't updated in 8 whole days! Sorry! As always, time for Review Response!**

**alxkend: Thank you for saying 'You're the man!'**

**CloneGirl: Yeah, it would be crazy if Dammy acted like an actual fangirl. And that was a funny comment about me 'stalking' them.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Sure! I'll definitely use the Light Ball! As for the TM's, I sent you a PM about that.**

**Now, I'll answer this unasked question. What was the pairing I saw that I'm sure CloneGirl hates seeing on the Naruto Archive? It's ItaSasu (Itachi and Sasuke). Yes! I have seen this disturbing pairing!**

It was a peaceful night over the city of Wardington. As the heroes slept, Naga and Metal Sonic planned their invasion.

"So, Master Naga, where should we attack first once the final three runts get their powers since we cannot stop them?"

"First, let us make a point by blowing up a place where they shall converge, he said, looking at Metal Sonic's hologram map. "Aha! There!" he said, pointing at a building. It was the high school that all of the Brawlers but Christopher shared. He went to the middle school a few blocks away. In fact, Naga pointed to the middle and elementary school to show he meant business. He had to make sure Drago did not go with Dan to school. The cores would be needed to make all of the worlds collide. However, one was saved because of the Brawler Guardians.

"So, we will attack the school when?"

"The very day they go back. They will be too focused on finding their pathetic classes to realize the school is being blasted before it's too late!" Naga laughed maniacally.

"You are a true genius. Eggman had to put up with Sonic at his full potential, but you are truly confident!"

"Yes. And, just wait a few weeks, and something truly evil will happen! And I will not have to lift a finger!"

"I take it you have gained the ability to see into the future?" Metal Sonic asked the Darkus Bakugan.

"Indeed I have!" Naga crackled.

_Back to Earth..._

It then became 9:00 in the morning. The group finished eating a breakfast by Kato. They walked out, Pikachu holding his map.

"So, can we go after my moves today?" Pikachu chirped hopingly. Dan put on that sincere smile he wore quite a bit nowadays. He rubbed his head like Ash did.

"Sure thing, buddy." He straightened his body up and cracked his neck. It was stiff lately due to the stress. They boarded his limo and drove off. Pikachu flipped through his map, seeing that they should go in order.

"So, Pikachu, the map has the moves you know in the game. Are there any others you know in real life that you can't use in a Brawl?"

"Iron Tail and Dash are the only two I can think of...okay, we should go find Thunder Wave next. It's about 3 miles from here, and we should get there pretty quickly."

"What would that do?"

"Well, Einstein, we won't know until Pikachu gets it," Runo teased.

"Yeah, I guess. So, are we going after all...?"

"Eight? Yes, we are. We have 12 hours to search, and that's all the time we need!"

"Okay then! So, Thunder Wave is close by, huh?"

"This is a nice limo! What's next, a cruise liner?" Amy asked.

"Parents have two of those..." he said as if it were nothing special.

"But, I have THREE private jets. You don't," Klaus said.

"But your's doesn't turn into a super resistant sub, now does it?" Marucho said. Soon, the two got into a fight over who's richer. For instance a skyscraper or castle fight came up. They tried to get the others to help, but they wanted no part of it. Then, Marucho just had to say something unkind to put him in his place.

"At least I put my money to good use!"

"Well, at least I have two parents to share it with, Mister I never share my money. Greedy pig!" Marucho yelled. Kato sighed.

"I'll never get teenagers..." he said.

"So, is there any item you can get?"

"Well, I heard the Light Ball is in New York City. We can go there next!"

"Ah...New York City. The city that never sleeps!" Julie said with sparkles in her eyes.

"Hey! I live in Manhattan! We can stop at my house on the way there!" Sara exclaimed. Dammy also lived there, but she never said anything. "But first, we need to find your Thunder Wave. So, if it's 3 miles from here, that means it's in the small mountain range." It was true. Wardington also mad a small mountain range. It was surrounded by everything. The ocean, a forest, a mountain range, and sandy beaches were just a few. At least there were no volcanoes like on Vestroia.

"You know, I wonder. If Vestroia becomes a huge continent, you think that drab area will form like the rest of it?" Tigrerra asked.

"Huh? What do you mean, Tig?" Runo asked.

"Well, that area we were in near the Haven of Virtue is much different from the other 90% of the universe."

"Really? What's the rest like?" Alice asked.

"Colorful..." Reaper groaned.

"Just imagine icy blue mountains, rivers, and flowers and plants of every kind of color. Warm summery air and a few volcanoes for Pyrus, deep water for Aquos, strong winds for Ventus, a bright light source for Haos, dim spots for Darkus, and nutrient-rich soil and caves for Subterra. There's something for every Bakugan," Solero said.

"Well, if the Haven of Virtue adapted to our world, it would probably become marble or something," Dan said. Julie was off in her own little world, saying girly things. That was getting on everyone's nerves. Masquerade whispered to Dan.

"Julie necesita cerrar su boca, si no pondré la cinta del conducto en ella." Dan nodded.

"What did he say?" Runo asked.

"He said, 'Julie needs to shut her mouth, otherwise I'll put duct tape on it' in Spanish." Runo busted a gut. Julie stopped and turned to them.

"What's so funny, guys?" she asked curiously.

"Oh, nothing, Julie," Dan chuckled. Runo was giggling.

"You two haven't aged at all in terms of maturity. You're 17 for god sakes! Grow up!" Julie said.

"What a hypocrite!" Billy said. "You still act like you're 13, Julie!"

"In fact, I don't think any of us have grown out of our younger stages. I hope we don't. Last thing I want is to have to worry about bills and junk," Masquerade said.

"Don't worry, bro. Marucho's parents gave us tons of money since we saved the world. I'll split mine with you!" Alice said.

"Alright! We're here!" Pikachu hollered. Kato parked the limo as they ran up the mountainside. They were only about 200 feet high, so air deprivation was no issue. Pikachu explained that near the top was a cave that led to a tunnel. Julie used her Subterra powers and created a disc of earth that carried them to the tunnel.

"I just wish we didn't have to say our element name to activate these powers," Dan muttered.

"Just goes to show how impatient you can be," Sara said. "Now, let's go!" Mario and Runo lit up the dark tunnel as they walked in. Thunder Wave was right in the middle. It seemed strange that when he grabbed and absorbed it no traps were activated.

"Man, just like when we got Calibur!" Sonic said.

"Calibur?" Dammy asked.

"It's a sword of mine. I'll show it to ya when we start training!"

"Sounds like...Excalibur..." Marucho said.

"You wouldn't believe..." Sonic mumbled in secrecy. He didn't want to give away the fact that Calibur can become Excalibur. They went back to the limousine, which was surrounded by jealous rioters. Soaking them with water, Marucho warded them off and climbed in the seat with the others.

"That was a first. We've never been surrounded!" Marucho said with a shocked look. Kato was rather troubled himself.

"I'll say. That was creepy," Speedy said. They drove back and boarded the jet (boy, they use this jet a lot, don't they?). Next stop, Manhattan. Once they got they got there, Sara ushered them in a human chain to show her house to them. Since Dammy wouldn't do it, she also showed them to her house.

"Well, here's our shack!" Zorano said, motioning to the clean, sturdy, two-story house. Dammy bonked her Bakugan.

"This is why I didn't bother telling you I lived here! Stupid resentful Bakugan!"

"Can we go in? My feet hurt from walking!" Marucho whined.

"Well, okay. Just don't go rolling your eyes when you see my room here!" She showed them the good sized kitchen, living room, two bathrooms, and two bedrooms. It was a pretty average house. Masquerade took quick notice at the picture of him on her mantle.

'Wow. She really was a fangirl not too long ago," Masquerade thought. When they got to Dammy's room, they were thrown back. Multiple pictures of her favorite characters filled the brims of the walls. A few pictures were expertly photo-shopped with pictures of herself to make it seem she was in the picture with them.

'Dang. What a dweeb!' Dan thought. They then turned and let since they saw everything.

"Okay, so NOW we're going to NYC!" Pikachu said, relieved.

"Would you chillax? We'll get your power ups! It's only, what, 1?"

"This leaves us with only eight hours to go to the North Pole and Himalayas!"

"So warp!"

"Are you kidding? With the air change..."

"I'll go with ya. I can make an atmosphere bubble, you know."

"And I should go to keep you two toasty. It is cold those ways!" Dan said. Pikachu nodded. They warped to NYC, and they retrieved the Light Ball in a jewelry store. Luckily, since it wasn't jewelry, it was free.

"Okay, now can we go to Tibet?" Pikachu asked.

"You, Dan, and Shun go on. I wanna stay here for a while and go shopping for something I saw earlier," Masquerade said. Julie's eyes lit up at that one little word.

"Really? Like what?" Julie asked.

"It's over at that skyscraper a few blocks away."

"Okay then. Let's go..." Pikachu said. They warped, and Masquerade ran off with the others in close pursuit. They stopped at a skyscraper store titled _All Music, All Kinds_ (kinda lame, but I couldn't think of anything fancy). He rushed inside with 1,000 bucks that Alice handed him. He came out about 10 minutes later, carrying a humongous box.

"Masquerade, what the heck are you carrying?!" Alice asked. He set it down in a shadow.

"It's a drum set. Wait till I show it to you at home."

"Why would you..."

"I think it'll be cool to learn drums."

"Hey, cool! I have a guitar!" Sonic said, pulling out a reduce/enlarge ray and a small guitar that could fit in a backpack. He fired it, and it grew to normal size. "You know, if you get good, you and I could make our own little rock band!"

"You'd be great!" Dammy cheered happily.

"Well, it's too early to say that. First, I have to practice! But, for now, let's wait for the others. Darkus! By the power of the Darkus Guardian! Shadow...Warp!" The box disappeared, and it was sent to Michael's house. They went and sat down in Central Park. The three came back in a bit, Pikachu beaming brightly.

"So, where to now?" Marucho asked Masquerade, who didn't hear him. He noticed he had headphones. He plucked one and yelled, "CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW?!" Masquerade fell backwards.

"Ouch! I was listening to my new I-pod, thank you!"

"You got an I-pod _and_ drums?" Dan asked.

"Yep. Do you have one?" Masquerade asked. Dan pulled a red one out of his pocket.

"Never go anywhere without it. And this is an I-pod Touch."

"Lucky. I didn't have that much money..." Masquerade grumbled.

"Oh well. So, that takes care of Double Team and Slam now...so there are only five more to go. Let's go after Thunderbolt now," Pikachu said.

"Where's that at?" Runo asked.

"Says it's in some river about 10 miles from here...not even marked on this map. It must be tiny."

"Okay, let's go! It's 1:30, and we need to get moving!" Dan said in his improvised leader type voice. They drove off yet again. Runo pulled some Pepsi out of one of the three mini fridges and chugged it down. Marucho was watching a cartoon on the TV in the back on the front seat. Shun just stared out the window, watching the city of lights disappear from view. Soon, they approached a more rural version.

"I didn't think New York was rural too," Preyas said.

"Only the more southeastern cities are. Most of it is rural, but you don't hear a lot about it," Marucho explained. The Thunderbolt was located inside a small hydroelectric plant.

"What's this?" Reaper asked.

"Well, Reaper, if it's powerful enough, we can actually harness water to push electricity producing turbines. That's why there weren't any power plants in the city," Alice explained. The Bakugan were impressed, needless to say. Pikachu grabbed it, and it was absorbed quickly. Next stop was the Great Plains. That was where his Feint attack was.

"You Pokemon sure have interesting moves," Tigrerra pointed out.

"Thanks, Tigrerra!" Pikachu said.

"You are such a suck up, you know that, Tig?" Runo teased.

"Excuse me, milady, but who is the one who keeps complimenting their gullible teacher in hopes of good grades, which does work, when normally you'd fail?" Tigrerra shot back.

"How...how did you?"

"You leave your diary on the floor in front of my little dollhouse you made for me ever day, Runo." Runo's ears were flaming red. "And I mentally recorded every single entry." Her tone sounded like...blackmailing.

"What's with that tone? Are you...thinking of blackmailing me?!" Runo asked.

"No way! I'd never be that cold!" Runo sighed. Quickly, she muttered. "Not yet...anyway." They left yet again. The hours ticked by as they searched in the more difficult parts, like a seemingly endless cornfield where Feint was, and the famous Greek Labyrinth where his Agility was. Thank goodness that the Minotaur was only a myth. After spending a long time in there, it was 6:00.

"Time to eat! I'm starving!" Dan said while everyone sat down on a picnic blanket.

"I stopped at a Subway and got everyone's favorite!" Runo said, tossing everyone a foot-long sub. They ate them quickly, and then got back in the plane. According to Pikachu, Discharge was on top of the Space Needle. It seemed ironic. It was a tall building, but it didn't act like a lightning rod, and an electric attack was atop.

"Weird! An electric attack on a large building that ironically doesn't act as a lightning rod!" Preyas said. Pikachu used his Agility can ran up the structure. Discharge was absorbed.

"All that's left now is Light Screen, right?" Link asked.

"Yep!"

"So, where to?"

"Says it's in the Alamo. Let's go!" Three more hours ticked by as they got to the old historic monument, and Light Screen was somehow inside a broken window. They retrieved it quickly, and they quickly zoomed back to Wardington. It was nighttime already. Tomorrow was another day, and it was now Mewtwo's turn.

**Okay, almost everyone has their power ups! Things are going great! So, Naga is planning on attacking the three schools! Can the Brawlers stop this when it happens? And what horrible thing that is not Naga's doing is bound to happen? Guess time will tell, huh?**


	36. Mewtwo Mania!

**A/N: Wow! 111 reviews! That's an average of almost 3 reviews per Chapter! Okay, time for Review Response with chaohacker:**

**Kazo the Hedgehog: Sorry, buddy. I know you are a little ticked of having to wait another Chapter.**

**brave kid: Don't worry; I'm sure you'll come up with some ideas. And, I bet that you are looking forward to when Ninja Madness is finished so I will start typing your story!**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Yeah, oh well. Well, I have some ideas of my own for BSCC: Duels and Brawls, but I'll PM them to you. And don't worry, Ash's Aura powers won't be ignored in BSCC: Pokemon Panic.**

**alxkend: Yep! I knew you'd like to hear that!**

**CloneGirl: You're welcome. Boy, being glad to be called a psycho. You don't get mad easily, do you? **

**Okay, now on to the story!**

"Mewtwo! Wait up!" was the noise that anyone in Wardington could've heard. Mewtwo was running amok, due to overloaded excitement (pretty OOC, huh? I just wonder if all of the characters besides Masquerade are being a bit OOC...Of course, with him, he pretty much has to be.). He finally had the chance to get the rest of his moves, and boy did he have a lot of them.

"Come on, hurry up! My Psych Up move is here in the city!" Mewtwo hollered to the lagging group behind them. Sonic had finally run himself ragged. Keeping up with an excited Mewtwo was like trying to catch up to a ten year old version of himself that had gobbled massive amounts of sugar and coffee. Speedy was surprised to see his younger brother so tired, but he was too.

"We're coming, Mewtwo!" they hollered. Soon, they stopped at an abandoned shack. Runo was creeped out by the fact that it was so dusty and possibly bug-infested. They walked inside. There was a man sitting there, and he eyed the group.

"What you doin' here?"

"Just looking for...Aha! There!"

"Just a weirdo packet. Just take it then..." he grumbled. Mewtwo nodded and grabbed it. It turned a bright blue, and it was absorbed into his body.

"Alright! I got my Psych Up back! Okay, now to the next power-up!" They ran outside. Runo turned to ask.

"Who was that guy?! He gave me the creeps!"

"Pay him no heed. Just a homeless man, nothing bad.

"I don't...what the?!" Runo turned just in time to see the man walking out and staring at them.

"How heck you do dat?" the man asked. He definitely had a lack of education.

"It's one of my Pokemon moves, and none of your concern. Come on, guys, we need to get to Hong Kong."

"Bak choy!" Kirby shouted randomly. They rolled their eyes and ran off. The man just stood there, curious.

"So, how many of your power-ups are in Hong Kong?"

"Three. In some giant skyscraper. The biggest one there,"

"Well, that helps if we go by Marucho's jet."

"Actually, we need to take one of Klaus'. Kato forgot to recharge it..." Marucho grumbled. Klaus snorted as they warped to Klaus' mansion, boarded the plane, and flew off quickly. Within four hours, they were at the large city. The skyscraper wasn't hard to find, once Marucho translated the map with his laptop.

"Super genius!" Tails complimented. Tails and Marucho had become the best of buddies, mainly because they both had eyes for tech, and they had a lot of tech. They reached it. Turns out, it was a hotel with many secret rooms. They, being as famous as they were, did not need to check in. Luckily, Mewtwo's powers found the hidden elevator that led to a storage room. His packets of moves were somehow buried in deep and tall shelves. It took them quite a while to find them, but soon, he got them. They were then off to the country of Italy, where Amnesia, Power Swap, and Guard Swap were (I know that these are crammed, but I don't have many ideas for places). So, very quickly, since it was already about 2:00, they split up to find them. Sonic found Amnesia in a place with rickety shelves where anything could fall on you.

"Coincidental..." Sonic muttered. He grabbed it and zoomed out. Then, the shack crumbled. "Oops." Speedy found Power Swap inside the Sistine Chapel. Naturally, he stopped to admire the ceiling fresco (I could never do that. I freak in places with tall ceilings! *shudder*).

"What a marvel!" Speedy said.

"Indeed!" said a museum curator.

"Oh, hello there," Speedy replied. The curator told him the history of the fresco, which intrigued him. Suddenly, Speedy was brought back to reality. "Oh dear, I forgot I need to find something here! Now, where is that packet labeled "**Power Swap**"...?"

"Here you are!" said the curator. "I almost threw it away, but felt it seemed valuable to someone. Is it yours?"

"No, it's Mewtwo's. Thank you, sir!" He bowed and ran off back to Mewtwo. He saw Sonic was back, as well as Amy, who found Guard Swap. The next three: Psychic, Me First, and Recover, were located somewhere in Russia, so they bundled up. It didn't take long, just one hour, to find the ice maze underground.

"Man! Why are these places so harsh?" Sara asked, chilled to the bone underneath her thick jacket. So, after avoiding many pitfalls, they found their way to a burial ground that sent shivers up everyone's spine.

"Okay, let's get the goods and get outta here!" Runo said. Man, she still sounded like a tomboy! Dan rolled his eyes, and they walked to a dome. They took the unwelcome packets off, and the place seemed less scary. Mewtwo absorbed them, and they bolted. They hated harsh elements!

"How...many...left...now?" Daisy asked, out of breath.

"Two. Safeguard and Aura Sphere are located in Transylvania."

"What!? A creepy haunted country?!"

"Yep!" Mewtwo said gleefully. Ganondorf was excited. They flew to the supposedly haunted castle, and they walked carefully through the creaking history piece. Runo and Christopher were horrified. Christopher clung to Alice, while a green Runo was holding Dan's wrist. Pikachu used Thunder, and Christopher peed his pants because of the sudden light. Alice had a worried frown etched on her face, but she had to keep moving. A thunder blast scared Runo so badly that she stopped moving. It was like being in a real-life horror movie. Of course, Mewtwo, Ganondorf, and Meta Knight weren't frightened. They quickly got the final two before Runo would soil her skirt. It was now nighttime over Wardington, so the gang found a hotel outside of the area and went to sleep.

**As I said, these will be short. Now, for the polls I mentioned. These are review polls so that people without accounts can vote.**

**Poll No. 1:**

**If I do a BSCC: Digital Dismay (Bakugan Smashers/Digimon x-over), what season do you want it to be (Note: No matter which one you choose, the season one characters will be in there)?**

**Season Name/Leader (in case I mix them up).**

**Season 1/Tai**

**Season 2/Davis**

**Frontier/Takuya**

**Tamers/Takato**

**Data Squad/Marcus**

**or...**

**All 5 Seasons**

**Poll No. 2:**

**My friend says that the Speed Racer x-over and the Storm Hawks x-over are bad ideas. Do you agree? Kazo the Hedgehog, alxkend, this is not for you, since I know your opinion already.**


	37. Lucario Complete!

**A/N: Alright, this is the end of the Power-up arc! Next is Mute City, then it's the training arc! Now, time for Review Response.**

**alxkend: Can't decide? That's okay. The poll will stay open for a week or two, depending on the votes. Of course, if you can't decide between the five, you can choose all five.**

**xXShikigamiXx: Okay, that's one vote for Frontier/Season 1! And as for the fact that it might be a little much, I don't think so, really. I mean, here's the list of all of the characters:**

**Tai, Matt, Izzy, Sora, Mimi, Kari, Joe, T.K.**

**Cody, Willice, Davis, Ken, Yolei**

**Takuya, Zowie, J.P., Tommy, Koji, Koichi**

**Takato, Henry, Rika, Jeri, Suzie**

**Marcus, Yoshi, Thomas, Keenan**

**But, you can stick with Frontier if you want. Just so you know, you can change your vote at any time.**

**CloneGirl: That's fine. If you want to, do some reading on Wikipedia by typing in the name of one of the characters. But, if you can't decide, it's fine.**

**FGERGDg: Thank you for your comment. And, if you continue reading, there is a slight Pokemon cameo, and the Pokemon World will be visited by Red, Jigglypuff, and Pichu in the Smash World arc.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Okay, so that's one vote for all five and a 'yes' vote for the other sequels. As for intertwining all 5 seasons, I haven't seen episodes of where the leader of one season meets the other, so I don't know if that idea will work the way you want it. Oh well, it's not that big of a deal! And thanks for your votes!**

**...But, what made you think that I don't like TK or the 02? If it's because that I said no matter which one was chosen the first Digidestined would be in there, my friend Kazo the Hedgehog REALLY wants to see an Agumon vs. Pikachu fight.**

**Now, on to Lucario's powers.**

"Okay, Lucario. How many moves do you need?" Klaus said. It was a bright, sunny, 9:00.

"Well, according to this map, all of mine are located on some large island in Hawaii, so I think we can take our time."

"Well, it'll take about five hours to get there, so what can we do until then?"

"Why don't we just warp there?"

"Well, the Dimensional Transporter only works on places when we know exactly where to go," Masquerade explained.

"Oh. So, we take a cruise liner or jet there, search, and then warp back here?" Dan asked. They nodded.

"Well, I'll be back," Masquerade said. "I have something I'd like to do. See ya later!" Masquerade ran off, leaving the others curious. Dan logged on to the site to see if he was still in 1st place. In fact, everyone was still in the same place that they were in earlier! Dan: 1st, Masquerade: 2nd, Shun: 3rd, Runo: 4th, Marucho: 5th, Julie: 6th, Alice: 7th, Joe: 8th, Chan: 9th, Klaus: 10th, etc... The Smashers did beat them, but they weren't Bakugan players.

"Where do you think Masquerade is going?" Dammy shrugged. She just knew it was a secret, but this time, she didn't want to find out. It was then that Masquerade stopped at a building.

"There it is..." He walked inside. Back at the Brawler's house, Sonic was just wondering what new effects his moves would have. Tails was cleaning up the Cyclone. Amy was practicing her hammer swings. Marucho was watching Tails work on fixing it up. Amy had accidentally fried a lot of circuits when she crashed it. Soon, it was like brand new. The Tornado 2 mode worked as well.

"Okay, done!" Tails said, wiping off some oil stains. He then went to take a shower. It was then that Masquerade came back, very proud for some reason. He refused to tell them why, but they could tell it was something to be proud of. Everyone did their own thing. Occasionally, the blonde would pull his wallet out and happily look at something, but when someone asked him, he'd put it away and say it was still a secret. Soon, it became 2:00. They had eaten a hearty lunch and were ready to go. As they flew, Masquerade still kept having that smirk (Masquerade's little new secret will be revealed at the end of the story). However, soon, everyone forgot.

"So, where to?" Preyas asked.

"Well, they're all supposed to be on Maui. As for the exact location, only my map can tell us that," Lucario said. They landed on the airstrip and Kato parked it after getting authorization from the owner. After climbing out, Lucario opened his map.

"So, how many do you have to get, Lucario?"

"Looks like I have to get...ten."

"Okay then, where to?"

"Detect and Metal Claw are in a reef not too far from the shore. Let's go." They ran to the reef. Marucho formed a bubble as they walked down on the sandy sea floor. It wasn't totally deep, but they were completely underwater. A dolphin swam by, and Runo looked at it. It was obviously a playful calf. It squeaked as it swam into the reef. It came back with two strange blue objects connected by a string of seaweed.

"Eek eek!" The dolphin squeaked as it zoomed past them. It dropped them right in Lucario's palms.

"What just happened?" Dammy asked.

"Gotta love telepathy," Lucario smirked.

"Oh! You communicated with the dolphin! Smart!" Pikachu said. Lucario nodded as they got back. He dropped the seaweed into the ocean. They continued onward to some resort, where Counter was supposedly dropped into the owner's window and was put in a case. They walked in.

"Ah! Aloha! Welcome to Maui Mania Condominiums! Would you like a room?" the perky owner asked. Lucario shook his head.

"No thank you. We'd just like to see that packet over there," Dan said. The owner raised an eyebrow, but walked over to it.

"Nice, isn't it? That thing shines so brightly, it might be worth a lot of moolah. I guess since you are heroes, you can hold it, but only for 15 seconds, and with gloves!" Dan put on some gloves, and so did Lucario. Dan took it and handed to a grateful Lucario. Before the owner could comprehend, it was absorbed into Lucario's body. "What the?"

"It was a move packet I needed," Lucario stated. "Come on guys. We have to keep moving. Feint and Bone Rush are in this small rainforest." They walked out and began to explore through the trees. Of course, Julie just HAD to find something to squeal about. Mainly, it was the small animals running around.

"How can you stand her, Billy?" Sonic whispered.

"In one ear, out the other," Billy explained. They then found Feint inside a nest. Lucario absorbed it as they moved on. Bone Rush was in some kind of shaman territory. He took it quickly, then they proceeded to a volcano nearby. The hours rushed by as they continued to search. Metal Sound was in a factory.

"So, how many are left after Metal Sound?"

"Just four."

"At least you didn't have as many as Mewtwo," Dan said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Mewtwo asked.

"You may be a legendary Pokemon, but seriously! Too many moves!" Dan responded.

"Shut it. There's nothing wrong with that!" the Pokemon retorted.

'Man, he's arrogant!' Sonic said in his head. Lucario found Metal Sound in between a couple of boxes. Next was Me First.

"That's a strange name for a move."

"Basically, you steal whatever move is about to be used on you, and then you throw it back at 'em," Lucario explained.

"Oh! That makes sense!" Dan said.

"About time!" Runo teased.

"Are you still mad about when I called you a scatterbrain five years ago?" Dan groaned. Runo smirked.

"Maybe...?" Runo said with a playful tone. Dan slapped his head and muttered something under his breath. They continued to walk to and got Me First. Only three more to go.

"So, where are the final three?"

"Well, they're all...inside that cave!" Lucario said.

"Convenient. Better hurry. It's already eight. We've done a lot of walking. They stepped in, Runo, Mario, and Dan providing light and heat. They got there, gathered the power ups, and headed to Ever Peak. They'd need to hop in that portal to get to Mute City tomorrow. They went to sleep, ready for the next day.

**Phew! Finally done with all of the power-ups! Great, now I gotta think of their Bakugan effects....darn... Oh well, Mute City is next!**

**Okay, quick overview of poll results:**

**Poll 1:Frontier-1**

**All-1**

**Poll 2:Yes-2**

**No-1**

**Well, that's all! Look forward to Mute City next!**


	38. Races and Memories

**A/N: Okay, people, I have one more vote for the poll, though it was a personal and not a review. Also, I'd like to point out that I accidentally messed up on Poll 2's answer. I put down 2 votes for yes, and they should've been placed on 'don't agree'. So, here's what it should've been:**

**Yes-1**

**No-2**

**Now, for the updated.**

**Yes-2**

**No-2**

**Now for Review Response!**

**alxkend: I don't know what LAWL means, but I guess it means the same as LOL. Anyway, thanks!**

**CloneGirl: Alright, I'll reveal it this chapter. It leads to a funny gag at the end of this chapter.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Thanks for your comment about the PM.**

**xXShikigamiXx: Yeah, I know Lucario is a Fighting/Steel. I know a LOT about Pokemon. And yes, if all are mixed, Dan would be Takuya. I think it'll be cool when Marcus and Tai are confused as to why their Agumon have different evolutions.**

**Also, I know that in Chapter 34 I mentioned about a book that the Brawlers and Smashers would be making. That will happen during the training arc beginning in Chapter 40 or at the end of this chapter.**

**Now, on to Mute City!**

The scene begins with a quiet, unmanaged hotel where our heroes are sleeping. Tails has his repaired Cyclone ready, and they are about to travel to Captain Falcon's home of Mute City. All they have to do is stop the merging by activating their powers, right? Well, they'll have to get to the center of Mute City, and that won't be very easy with hardcore racers around!

"Masquerade, what fanfiction are you checking out now?" Runo asked.

"It's the same one as before. It's definite. The author is watching everything we do. He even knows my secret I want to wait to show you guys!" Masquerade said. He then searched around and found one rather weird. He read the nine chapter story, but then he had a weird look on his face. He showed it to Alice.

"Okay, I know of OOC, but in this story, we're like, SOOCTTPOBR!" Alice said.

"What does that mean?"

"It's my own acronym. It means 'So Out Of Character To The Point Of Beyond Recognition'. Trust me. We are _very_ OOC in this story."

"Which ones?"

"Dan, you, Marucho, Shun, Me, Masquerade, and Klaus," Alice told Runo.

"I see."

"Hey, and there's this other one that's pretty cool! You know that show, Digimon Frontier, where the kids turn in to Digimon?"

"Yeah, I know that show!" Dan said.

"Heh, this one for some reason has you as the reincarnation of Takuya Kanbara!" Dan spit out his pop.

"Move over, let me read that!" Dan began reading. "This is a good read I must say. Beginning of the sequel's not half bad, either."

"Speaking of books, when are we going to start writing our own?" Shun asked.

"Well, I was thinking that we should start after we save Mute City."

"Good idea," Marucho said. It was then that a wave of energy occurred, letting them know that the portal to Mute City opened.

"Let's go, you guys!" Dan said excitedly. They hopped on the Bakugan and took off. Eggman made sure to stay close with the birdbot.

"So, just go find the center, activate our powers, and we're done here!" Alice said, all of them now flying through the branch portal. Suddenly, they found themselves flying above a racetrack that defied belief. Some of it was actually floating!

"How the heck do you race on these unstable grounds?" Sara asked.

"We don't. The track acts as a guide. We actually glide a few inches above the track. The weird yellow things send out a magnetic pulse that boots our accelerators, increasing our speed," CF explained.

"That's cool! So, _Douglas_, when did you...." Pikachu began, but was interrupted when he was grabbed by his neck.

"What did you call me?!"

"What? Do you...not like your real name?" Pikachu asked, fearful. Samus pinched his shoulder.

"Let 'em go!" she ordered.

"Alright..." CF placed Pikachu down and nodded. "It's a stupid name. That's why I have that nickname."

"Okay then," Dan said.

"So, CF, when did you start racing?"

"Well, not very long ago. I just hope Black Shadow isn't here. That guy's annoying!"

"Don't worry, we won't be racing!" They looked up to see the sky covered in a green aura.

"We have to hurry. Who knows how long we have before this world disintegrates!" Marucho said, scanning the contour of the land.

"The center is...huh?!" They stopped as a man stood in front of them.

"Move it, Black Shadow! We have to stop this world from disintegrating!" CF shouted.

"Ha! Like I care! I'd prefer it that way! Who cares if you'll all perish along with me? At least I'll know you're gone!" Dan jumped off of Drago and blasted him with a few pellets of fire, sending him packing.

"That was easy," he said, fire coming from the soles of his shoes like rockets suspending him in air. He landed back on Drago and they began to search. They finally got to the center and fixed the problem.

"That was...fast..." Drago said.

"Hey, I know what we can do here!" CF said.

"What?"

"How's about you guys hop in the audience over there to watch an F-Zero race?" he suggested.

"That sounds cool! I know I couldn't participate. I'd just smoke you like a barbecue," Sonic teased.

"F-Zero machines may not move faster than the speed of sound, but they go pretty fast."

"Well, we could stick around for one. I heard these have crashes!" Sonic said, pulling out a giant slushie. Speedy sat beside him, a little nervous about the crashing thing, but this sounded like fun to watch. CF went to the registration desk and then got into his Blue Falcon. The race started with all ten machines on the racetrack, with Black Shadow being absent due to a case of having a scorched costume. Suddenly, the sign flashed.

3.....2....1...GO!!

The racers zoomed off with a fast start. Using his scanner, he could see that these machines went about 660 km/h.

"Man, those are fast!" Tails said, barely believing the readings. Sonic yawned.

"I could beat those machines with my eyes closed," Sonic smirked. A huge F-Zero fan growled at him and threw his popcorn. Sonic did a short supersonic dodge and then made a funny pose as he went around him, then went back to his seat. A few guys were staring at Alice and blushing, making Shun growl. However, their attention was reverted to the race. It had just now been the first lap, and CF was in the lead. He was passed a few times, but he kept his cool and handled the turns well. That helped him to get back in the lead, fans going wild.

"Go, CF!!" shouted some girls in the stands. CF made sure that he hit every boost and avoid 99% of the traps. He only hit one, and it did nothing much. Another lap completed, and CF was doing great. This was the final lap; he had to make sure that he would not be passed.

"Go, go, go!" shouted Dan, who was really enjoying this. Left, right, forward, sharp turn...he made sure to watch every move that the cars made. They closed in on the line, CF and two others neck and neck. It looked close, but CF activated his wings, sending the others flying of the course in a couple of explosions! He had won! The charred racers were lifted back on, muttering and such. He got a high-five from everyone, and then the group left back to Earth.

"Alright! Another world saved! So, what do we do now?" Dan asked.

"Well, I think that first; we should start on our book by discussing exactly what we will put in there," Joe said

"Well, we want the world to know exactly what Bakugan is, so we need a list of Bakugan, Ability Cards, etc.," Alice said. (Note, the Tome of the Six Elements will not be on this story to just make a few chapters, but showing them get the info will be)

"Good idea. So, while we form the list on Marucho's laptop, we gotta get our journals and/or diaries!" Dan said. Rolling his eyes, Shun quickly uploaded his electronic journal onto the laptop and printed it while Marucho had found the list. He then turned to Sara and Dammy.

"So, you two, can you tell us a bit about how you and your Bakugan met?"

"Sure!" Sara chirped. Dammy made it clear that she wasn't happy with mentioning her past with Zorano, but would anyway with an irritated sigh. Marucho knew that Zorano was crabby, but he didn't think it was that bad.

"Sara, why don't you go first?"

"Okay. Well, five years ago, I found Solero's card when it was pulling weeds out of my mom's garden near our summer home in Vermont. It was a nice, quiet cottage, really. Only my mom, dad, and I were in the family. I didn't have any siblings, so I usually got what I wanted, which was never much. So, I picked it up, and that's when Solero popped out."

"Yes. I remember that day quite well," Solero commented.

"Yeah, those days you were fun to talk to. Not anymore," Zorano grumbled.

"When he popped out, he started yelling and ranting, saying stuff like 'Where the heck am I?! Where is this ugly place!?' and other things I'd rather not repeat, 'cuz I have a feeling that the guy who is watching us doesn't want the rating to go from T to M. Of course, me being the always happy girl, I blew off his attitude quite well."

"I can't really picture Solero as a hothead," Shun said, stapling his pages together, creating basically a booklet.

"Yeah, well, I took him inside and introduced him to my parents. He basically ignored them. My mom was CRAZY about his behavior, and she almost threw him out the door! Of course, I knew he was from a different world and didn't know about Earthly manners, and I told her that. She seemed to calm down, but man did she glare!"

"That was the first milestone," said the cousin Bakugan.

"Well, as I trained Solero, I was also teaching him about manners. He said a few polite things, but he didn't seem to care, mostly. Well, then, I met Dammy about a week after then, and we battled each other. That's when I saw Zorano. Man, she was ruthless, ignorant, and downright insulting!"

"And I still am when I can be!" she screeched.

"Well, we lost to Zorano, mind you; this was back when they were in their first forms. Anyway, we lost due to Zorano's hard style of brawling, and she ended up evolving into Sorceress Zorano. It was then that after the battle, Solero seemed to understand that being harsh was not proper behavior on Earth."

"In other words, he started becoming a loser!" Dammy hit her Darkus Bakugan so hard that she went bouncing around, hitting multiple walls.

"Mostly, it was then after he evolved and became Flare Solero that he finally became more attached to Earthly customs and became the most polite Bakugan people ever knew. In fact, after a battle, people would compliment on Solero and me!" Zorano made a 'pssshh' noise as she had landed underneath Dammy's table.

"Indeed. I learned rather quickly, as that was only three weeks after all of the Bakugan came to Earth," Solero said.

"How did you evolve so quickly?"

"Well, in Manhattan, I met a lot of eager players. They had told me about how they had battled Dammy, but her out of control and stuck up Bakugan was too harsh. Of course, no one blamed Dammy. She was super popular and nice to everyone in her freshman class. She was only cranky when Zorano was bad-mouthing someone."

"Sounds like Zorano here could use help," Kato said.

"I don't want any, thank you," Zorano snapped.

"So, when did Flare Solero become Ultimate Solero?"

"Well, that was not too long before you guys recruited us. Anyways, when Naga was gone and the Bakugan left, Solero was more upset than I was. He actually tried to hold on to the ground to stay on Earth!"

"Seriously?" Dan asked.

"Of course, I told him that I was sure we'd see each other again, and we have! Solero was so happy when he came back that we hopped right into a duel! You should've seen him! He was running circles in excitement! When he evolved, he was proud that we still had our game faces. And, then, here we are!" Sara finished.

"Dammy?"

"Huh....fine. Well, I was basically walking along this small market street, staring at a picture of one of my favorite characters. It was then that a card hit me in the face. I picked it up and opened it, and Zorano, my living nightmare, popped out of it."

"What made you think it would be a nightmare?"

"Well, before I realized that she talked, I didn't think so. I had just walked back to my house, and then she spontaneously yelled 'Would you stop looking at that freakin' piece of trash?!' [Loose translation] So, naturally being surprised, I fell backwards onto a rose bush. Of course, I was crying, and she yelled and mocked me at the same time. Realizing how cold she was, I kicked her away and ran in, telling my parents what had happened."

"Dang. At least she's not as bad now!"

"Yeah. My parents knew about the talking Bakugan, so they believed me. And they were more than happy to know that I got rid of her."

"Why did you go back, Zorano?"

"I somehow ended up with her as my partner, and even though it made me want to hurl, I knew I needed her help to keep me from winding up the weakest."

"Yeah, so, I was casually sleeping, when I heard her walk in. Being outraged at her persistence of annoying me, I about threw her out the window. It was then that she explained about her having to be my partner."

"You must've hated that."

"I did. I hatred it more whenever I brawled, because I tried to activate Ability Cards, but she kept negating them and attacked her own way, making her ruthless nature really show. First brawl I had, I was terrified of her! To me, she was no sorceress. She was a witch Bakugan!"

"Excuse me?!?!" Zorano yelled.

"You heard me. It was almost, no, it _was_ an absolute miracle she calmed down after evolving! She lost her vicious side, but she was still crabby, especially indoors. This then escalated from her mouth when Masquerade showed up, and me going fangirl over him instead of being worried. She called me stupid, a loser, and other things I can't say!"

"Dang. All that just because of your fangirl-ness?" Masquerade asked. Dammy nodded. "Of course, Zorano wanted to be sure that she wouldn't be KO'd and sent to the Doom Dimension, but I didn't care. I participated in brawls, but it wasn't to make her stronger."

"It wasn't?"

"No. And it was mainly because then I introduced her to Kyle, and she noticed I blushed around him. She teased me about my minor crush, and I was so mad that I changed my opinion about the battles. I battled even more, but it wasn't for her. I wanted to be noticed by Masquerade." Zorano looked up at her with a shocked look, as did everyone else.

"When she evolved into Ultimate, I was disappointed that she was stronger, but I was happy when I noticed my ranking went up. I was hoping that I'd be noticed so I could actually ask, no, _beg_ you to send her to the Doom Dimension," she told Masquerade, leaving him speechless.

"Hold it! Back up! You mean that when you said that five years ago you would've gladly let him send me to the Doom Dimension..."

"I wasn't kidding," she finished, leaving everyone with open mouths.

"Are you serious?! Were you aware of his goal?" Runo yelled.

"At the time, no. But, when I did, I knew that him beating Zorano would only be a minor step, as in, it wouldn'tve really made a huge difference for his Hydranoid. That's why I kept going for it."

"I can't believe it! My attitude really made you hate me that much?"

"You hated being my partner, remember? So why would you have cared five years ago?"

"Well..."

"Anyways, I worked with her so long that we calmed down and were just more like...bratty sisters arguing instead of a bully/partner thing. So, I stopped brawling since then, and my ranking was surpassed quickly, making it sure that I wouldn't be noticed. I came to not hate Zorano so much. She changed a lot the day they left. She pretended to act like she didn't care, but I knew different. Trust me; we knew a lot about each other."

"Well, it's great that you two got to be nice to each other. Did you two miss each other for those five years?" Dan asked.

"Well, pretty much, but not like some people. I didn't mope in my room for days like some dumped fangirl. I was mostly bummed, of course, because I had heard that Masquerade was gone forever. Boy, was I wrong!"

"When Zorano came back, was she still the way she was when she left?"

"Thankfully, yes! As for our arguments now, like I said, they're more like sister things."

"Okay, well, does everyone have their books?" Dan asked. They nodded and Marucho took them to his room. Dan, however, formulated a dastardly plan that would cause the eventual humiliation of the Brawlers, Smashers, Amy, Tails, and Speedy. They went outside, ready to chill out for the rest of the day.

"Man, CF, that race was awesome! I can't wait to see any other races when your world fuses here!" Dan said.

"Speaking of vehicles, know that thing I was staring at yesterday?" Masquerade said.

"Uh, yeah?"

"Well, I was hoping to wait until after that Naga and his lackey were defeated, but I'll just show you know." He pulled out a key with a couple of buttons on it. He pressed one. He then dug into his wallet and pulled it out. Suddenly, a black sports car when a radio-control antenna came traveling down the road. It stopped right by him, and he leaned against it. He opened his wallet, and what they saw through the plastic surprised them.

"A...a...a..." Runo began.

"A....DRIVER'S LICENSE?!" Dan hollered, falling backwards.

"You like my new wheels?" he asked mockingly. Dan was red with anger.

"How did you get a full blown license and not just a permit?"

"Dan, Dan, Dan, isn't it obvious? I did help you guys defeat Naga, so they let me take the test at the DMV!"

"Seriously? Does that mean that I coulda...?"

"Yep, but you didn't. I thought about it first!" Masquerade mocked. Dammy squealed as she hopped in the passenger's side, Dan having a happy, yet jealous face.

"How did you get that car? It looks brand new!" Alice asked. Marucho and Klaus were tapping their pockets for some odd reason.

"Well, uh, it's complicated..." Masquerade had a slightly frightened look on his face, but kept facing forward. It was then that Marucho noticed something.

"Hey! My wallet feels thinner than usual!"

"Mine too!" said Klaus. They opened them and found that they weren't filled with the $6,000. It was then that Masquerade started the car in a panic. It clicked a few times and roared to life.

"YOU!!!!" they shouted.

"Uh...see ya!!" he said, putting the metal to the metal. Kato pulled up and Marucho and Klaus jumped in, having their heads out the top.

"MASQUERADE....!" they yelled.

"Don't worry; I'll pay you back!" he hollered, Dammy laughing insanely.

"MASQUERADE!!!! MASQUERAAAAAAAAAADE!!!!!!!"

**Oh ho ho! Man, that has got to be the best gag I've done yet! CloneGirl, I'm sure you are also laughing your head off. If you are, awesome! That would mean I'm getting better at humor! Well, training begins next chapter. Chapter 40 might not come so quickly, seeing as I know have to come up with multiple Ability Cards for the Ultimate Bakugan.**

**Also, I have to think of effects for the Smashers' new forms! Yikes! That'll be trouble, especially for Mario! He has so many! Sonic might be easy. Well, anyway, red and review!**


	39. The Training Begins: Aquos and Subterra!

**A/N: Sorry that this took so long! Man, coming up with effects are hard! Okay, time for Review Response!**

**alxkend: Yep, he sure is.**

**xXShikigamiXx: Our first vote change! That makes Poll No. 1:**

**All five: 3**

**And that's all of the votes. Yeah, Masquerade is pretty sneaky! But what makes you think that **_**she**_** is also evil?**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Well, the whole 'time-bending' was really just an unforeseen accident. I don't really get involved with the whole plot, so really, I have no idea when a game, manga, etc. really takes place. And as for Rick Wheeler (Ryu Suzaku), I honestly either don't know, or forgot about him. Depends on if he was in that F-Zero game for the GameCube. ** **And as for your review for 39, I don't quite understand why you would consider Dammy violent. I mean, she was just trying to get rid of her bullying Bakugan that was ruthless to other players. She only gets violent when someone hurts or insults Masquerade. But, I guess everyone has different opinions.**

**CloneGirl: Awesome! I made someone laugh! Well, I'll do my best to bring out the fangirl in ya!**

It was the day after the gang had saved Mute City. Masquerade, Marucho, and Klaus were all currently on their beds, recovering. Why?

_Yesterday…_

"_Ha!! Got you!!" shouted Marucho and Klaus who had hopped out of the limo. Masquerade had stopped the car in front of an ice cream shack. Dammy was inside, getting the two of them a chocolate soft-serve._

"_Uh oh!" Masquerade yelled. Dammy turned and walked out, and she saw the two proceeding to pound the heck out of the blonde. Dropping the ice cream, she ran over yelling._

"_You leave my Maskerado-kun alone!" she shouted._

"_You saw what he did! He stole our money, just for a car!" Marucho yelled._

"_Yeah! It wasn't funny!" Klaus added._

"_He said he'd pay you back when he could!" Dammy said, now lunging after them. A bruised Masquerade crawled out of the pile as Dammy began to quickly beat up the two rich kids, Kato almost cowering at the limo. She gave them both a couple of black eyes, multiple bruises, a fat lip, and a bloody nose. Almost strangely, Masquerade was in the same state, but it was caused by two people._

"_Dammy, please, stop! It was just..." Marucho screamed before he and Klaus were delivered a knock out blow. She tossed the two boys into the limo and helped Masquerade into the other seat, where she, Sara, and Daisy patched them up._

"_Boy, Dammy, you went nuts!"_

"_No one hurts Masquerade on my watch," she replied to Sara._

As for now, the three young men were resting, basically unable to move. Marucho, being the Aquos Guardian, had an amazing ability that allowed him to heal himself with water. He was the first to get up and walk out. Masquerade was next, and then Klaus. They walked out, looking a lot better.

"Alright, so now that we need to determine our Bakugan's effects, and also, we need to see if your moves have slightly different effects, we need to decide who will go first."

"Oh boy! More Smashers vs. Bakugan battles!!" Kirby shouted.

"Well then, who should go first?"

"Well, we should each go by type, and since it's the least work, how about all of the Aquos go first?" Sonic said, receiving a cheer from Marth, Marucho, Klaus, Christopher, Preyas, Sirenoid, Juggernoid, and Frosch. They stepped out into the field.

"Ready?" Marth asked. The Aquos Brawlers nodded.

********Training Simulation********

"Okay, when a training simulation is activated, we all throw down these Gate Cards: Area 12," Klaus explained, being an expert. "On these cards, no Bakugan is destroyed until someone calls a Gate Card, close."

"That sounds interesting, to say the least," Marth said.

"So, let's do this!" Marucho said.

"Gate Card, set!"

"Bakugan, brawl! Preyas/Sirenoid/Juggernoid, stand!" Marucho/Klaus/Christopher said. Marth jumped on the Gate Card with Preyas. "Gate Card, open! Area 12!"

"Gate Card, set!" shouted Marucho.

"Ha! Take this! Dancing Blade!" Marth began creating colorful blows from his sword, causing damage be merely slicing Preyas.

_**Preyas power decrease of 270 Gs.**_

Joe wrote down Marth's Dancing Blade effect.

"Okay, lowers opposing Bakugan by 270 Gs with 9 strikes."

"Take this! Ability Card, activate, Crossing Waves! With this, I can send in another Aquos Bakugan!" said Marucho. He sent in an Aquos Terrorclaw, and they attacked him.

"Ha, that all? Counter!" Marth put up his sword in Counter stance. They attacked, and Marth delivered a blow that sent them back.

_**Preyas and Terrorclaw in Training defeat. Next phase cancelled.**_

Joe again wrote down the effect of Counter.

"Okay. Reverses a direct attack."

"So, in Training, the losers next phase is cancelled. Interesting," Speedy said.

"I don't see how you can watch these with your fear of violence, bro."

"Well, really, these aren't very violent. I can handle cards and such."

"Hm. Makes sense."

"Oh, that's it! You're going down, now! Ability, activate! Ability Recover!" Marucho said. "Ability Card, activate! Crossing Waves! Bakugan, brawl! Stinglash, stand!"

"Three Bakugan out. Nice. Now we can see Giant Whirlpool in action! And since all of the Bakugan are on adjacent Gate Cards, that means Juggernoid, Frosch, and Sirenoid won't be so lucky!" Marth said.

"Ability Card, activate! Giant Whirlpool!" A whirlpool formed from the borders of the card and it hit the three dueling Bakugan.

_**All Bakugan on adjacent Gate Cards lowered to 50 Gs.**_

Joe wrote down its effect.

"Alright, now that that's done, only three more for me! Shield Breaker!" Marth said. He slashed them, raising his Gs by 50. "If you had activated an Ability Card, it would've been negated."

"Whatever," Marucho said

"Okay, now two." Marth said. Preyas launched a kick at him. Marth leaped into the air with his Dolphin Strike.

_**Attack negated.**_

"Lucky you guys aren't Ventus or you would've had your Gs lowered to 10!"

"Could you stop being arrogant and act more like the prince you are?" Marucho groaned.

"Yes. But I'm having too much fun! Now all that's left is my Final Smash!" Marth said. He activated it, and then his sword shone. He charged and hit Preyas, knocking him to the other Gate Card and lowering his Gs majorly.

"Okay, only two more to go. Juggernoid and Sirenoid just have to test their abilities," Joe said, relieved at how fast it was going. At this rate, unless people decided to do this one at a time, it would be over quickly.

"Now, Ability Card, activate! Destructive Lullaby!" Klaus said. "Now, normally, this card would destroy any Bakugan on the field, even if it wasn't battling Sirenoid, however, this is only training.

_**Marth, Terrorclaw, Preyas, Stinglash, Frosch, and Juggernoid in Training defeat. Next phase cancelled.**_

The others were left gawk-eyed. It was almost as powerful as Tornado Destruction Apocalypse!

"Dang..." Sonic whispered. If this was a real battle, it would've been intense!

"I have to definitely agree," Dan said, taking a seat beside him, eyes still focused on the Training Battle at hand.

"Just one more!" Christopher shouted. "Now, Ability Card, activate! Freeze Wall! Not only does this card freeze and make any Bakugan on the field incapable of anything, but, the opposing Bakugan on the same Gate Card as Juggernoid loses!" The spheres on Juggernoid's back started to glow, and a blast of near Absolute Zero temperature was shot from them. Sirenoid was defeated, and the other four were frozen.

_**Sirenoid in Training defeat.**_

"Okay now!" Klaus said. "We're done!"

"Gate Card, close!" they shouted, bringing their cards back to them.

********End Simulation********

"So, who's next?" they said.

"How about the Subterra attribute? There's not that many. Gorem, Cycloid, Clayf, Lucario, DK, and R.O.B. are the only ones I can think of," said Samus.

"Hello! Did you forget I gained the Subterra attribute when I beat Apollonir?!" roared Bowser.

"Oh! That's right!"

"Well, a multiplayer way would be a bit confusing and wasteful of Gate Cards," said Tentaclear in his robotic voice.

"Yeah, I guess...Hey! Guys! Did you hear that?!" Julio hollered.

"What?" said the others.

"I don't see what the big deal is. I'm just talking," said Tentaclear.

"Yeah, without pauses!" congratulated the Haos Bakugan's softy partner. Tentaclear then noticed.

"Oh! I guess I am! Nice!"

"Tentaclear has a point. So, we'll have multiple one-on-one matches, and one person throws down the Area 12 Gate Card," Lucario said.

"This one may take a while, considering the fact that you have a lot more moves. So, DK, R.O.B and Bowser should go before you, Lucario,"

"Aw, alright," was the reply.

"So, first battle: Julie vs. R.O.B!"

"Alright! Time to see who'll throw down the Gate Card!" Julie said, flipping a coin. "I call heads!" It landed on tails. "Augh!" Julie groaned. The robot snickered.

********Training Simulation********

"Gate Card, set!" yelled R.O.B. He jumped on.

"Bakugan...brawl! R.O.B. swatted Gorem to keep him from hitting him in the head, and he landed on the card. "Gorem, stand!" Ultimate Gorem emerged. Julie jumped onto Gorem's shoulder.

"Okay, Gate Card, open! Area 12!"

"Now, Ability Card, activate! Boomerang Hammer!" A four headed hammer appeared. It was as if he had gotten another of his hammers and combined the two! Gorem threw it, and it hit the Gate Card. However, since it was Area 12, it wasn't destroyed. It then came back and hit R.O.B.

_**R.O.B. lowered by 100 Gs.**_

"Now, it's my turn! Robo Beam!"

_**R.O.B. power increase of 100 Gs. Gorem lowered by 50 Gs.**_

"Ouch!"

"Now for a move I haven't used! Gyro!" He got out a charger rod and stuck a top on the top. It began spinning. It was quickly launched, causing a 70 G decrease of Gorem.

"Now, Arm Rotor!"

_**R.O.B. Power increase of 80 Gs. Ability and Gate Cards ineffective.**_

"Huh? Ooh! You're lucky this isn't a brawl or I'd be ticked!" Julie screeched.

"Now, Robo Burner!"

_**R.O.B. power increase of 30 Gs.**_

"Finally, Diffusion Beam!" The spiraling beam of energy came from the robots eyes.

_**Gorem in Training defeat. Next phase cancelled.**_

"Gate Card, close!" R.O.B. commanded. The card returned to him.

"So, who's next?" Dan asked, somewhat impatiently.

"Well, we still have to have DK and Bowser go, then it's Lucario," said Joe.

"So, what's the third battle?"

"Daisy vs. Bowser."

"Okay!" Bowser roared with delight. Daisy threw down her Gate Card.

"Bakugan, brawl! Clayf, stand! Gate Card, open! Area 12!" Daisy shouted after Bowser jumped on. "Now, Ability Card, activate! Power Charge!"

_**Clayf power increase of 100 Gs.**_

"Now for this! Subterra and Pyrus Co-Relation!"

_**Clayf power increase of 100 Gs.**_

"Having Pyrus and Subterra attributes is sweet! Now to start! Fire Breath!"

_**Bowser power increase of 150 Gs.**_

"That's… powerful!" Daisy said.

"Now for my Flying Slam!" Bowser ran after Clayf, picked him, jumped up into the air, and then slammed him into the Gate Card with his shell causing damage.

"Ouch!"

_**Clayf power decrease of 100 Gs.**_

"Dang! Okay, just a few more!"

"Okay, now, Whirling Fortress!"

_**Attacks ineffective. Bowser power increase of 70 Gs.**_

"Two…"

"Now, Bowser Bomb!" Bowser jumped into the air and cracked the Gate Card. However, it was Area 12, so it wasn't negated.

"One…" Daisy counted.

"Now, the finale! Giga Bowser!" Bowser transformed into Giga.

_**Bowser power increase of 550 Gs.**_

"Okay, Gate Card, close!" Bowser commanded. Joe typed in the effects once again on his laptop.

"Okay, now it's on DK!" Dan said. DK and Billy went to the battlefield, and Billy threw the card down.

"Ready?" DK asked. Billy nodded. DK and Cycloid got on the card, and Billy activated the Area 12. DK went first and did his Giant Punch, increasing his Gs by 270.

"Whoa…" said Billy. "Okay, no foolin' around! Ability Card, activate! Club Smash!" Cycloid's arm grew and smashed DK.

_**DK in training defeat. Next phase cancelled.**_

"Well, since neither of us really do anything, it doesn't matter if our phase is cancelled," said DK, making some sense. "Now for my Head Butt!" DK slammed his head into Cycloid stunning him

"Aw, man! Cycloid can't attack now!" Billy groaned.

"Also, Cycloid's power has dropped by 70 Gs!" DK bragged. Billy growled.

"You're lucky, punk!"

"Now for my Spinning Kong attack!" His span around in the air and hit Cycloid, dropping his Gs by 100.

"Sheesh! How powerful are these guys gonna get?!" Billy yelled, obviously frustrated.

"Next, my Hand Slap! It would cancel the Gate Card, but..."

"Yeah, yeah, I know!" DK rapidly slammed the ground.

"Finally, my Konga Beat!" DK jumped into the air and pulled some Bongos. He tapped and banged them, creating massive shockwaves. The minor ones lowered his Gs by 20, the medium ones lowered Cycloid by 50, and the large by 90! Talk about intense and multiple attacks!

"Finally! Gate Card, close!" Billy said, relieved that he was done. All that was left was Lucario. He would talk a while, so Julie launched Gorem and upped his Gs with multiple Ability Cards. (Okay, for these Pokemon and also Mario, I'm just going to skip their moves and then list them with the others at the end of the Chapter. That'll make things a lot easier!)

"Finally! We're done for today!" Dan said, relieved, even though he didn't do anything.

"So, Joe, got the list?" Wayvern asked.

"Yep! Here it is!" Joe said. He projected the list onto the white board. It read:

Marth

Shield Breaker: Increases Marth by 50 Gs and cancels activated Ability Cards.

Dancing Blade: Lowers opponent by 270 Gs.

Dolphin Strike: Evades attack and lowers opposing Ventus Bakugan to 10 Gs.

Counter: Reverse attack of Bakugan.

Critical Hit: KOs opponents in line of sight.

Ultimate Preyas

Giant Whirlpool: Lowers all Bakugan on Gate Cards adjacent to Preyas to 50 Gs.

Ultimate Juggernoid

Freeze Wall: Destroys opposing Bakugan on same Gate Card and prevents other Bakugan on the field from attacking.

Ultimate Sirenoid

Destructive Lullaby: Destroys all other Bakugan on the field.

Ultimate Gorem

Boomerang Hammer: Destroys Gate Card and lowers opposing Bakugan by 100 Gs.

R.O.B

Robo Beam: Increases R.O.B. by 100 Gs and lowers opposing Bakugan by 50 Gs.

Arm Rotor: Increases R.O.B.'s Gs by 80 and prevents him from being effected by Gate Cards and Ability Cards.

Gyro: Lowers opposing Bakugan by 70 Gs.

Robo Burner: Increases R.O.B by 30 Gs.

Diffusion Beam: Defeats opposing Bakugan.

Bowser

Fire Breath: Increases Bowser by 150 Gs.

Flying Slam: Lowers opposing Bakugan by 100 Gs.

Whirling Fortress: Increases Bowser by 70 Gs and makes Gate Cards and Ability Cards ineffective.

Bowser Bomb: Destroys Gate Card.

Giga Bowser: Increases Bowser by base amount of Gs.

Ultimate Cycloid

Club Smash: Defeats opposing Bakugan.

Donkey Kong

Giant Punch: Increases DK by 270 Gs.

Head Butt: Opposing Bakugan can't attack and is lowered by 70 Gs.

Spinning Kong: Decreases opponent by 100 Gs.

Hand Slap: Negates Gate Card.

Konga Beat: Randomly decreases opponent in 10 waves that are a mix of 20, 50, or 100.

Lucario

Aura Sphere: Increases Lucario by 100 Gs at initial power level. For every 100 Gs lost, the G increase is doubled.

Force Palm: Decreases opponent by 150 Gs.

ExtremeSpeed: Allows Lucario to evade attack and steal recent power increase.

Double Team: Evades attack.

Aura Storm: Defeats opposing Bakugan in one blast.

Dark Pulse: Gives Lucario the Darkus attribute and lowers opponent by 70 Gs.

Quick Attack: Lucario can attack during opponents turn with a 20 G increase.

Foresight: Doubles G decreasing attacks on opponent.

Detect: Negates any Ability Cards used that turn.

Metal Claw: Lowers opponent by 50 Gs. May raise Lucario by 60 Gs.

Counter: Decreases opposing Bakugan by double the amount of Gs lost from Lucario.

Feint: Lucario can attack Bakugan and negates all Ability Cards used in the process.

Bone Rush: Increases Lucario by 100 Gs.

Metal Sound: Decreases opponent by 120 Gs.

Me First: Steals just used Ability Card and uses its effects.

Swords Dance: Raises Lucario by 50 Gs.

Close Combat: Decreases opponent by 100 Gs and Lucario by same amount, but Gate Cards used on him are twice as effective.

Dragon Pulse: Increases Lucario by 30 Gs.

**Whew! Finally done! I am SO sorry this took so long! I promise I'll do better and update the next chapter, which is Darkus and Haos, a lot faster! **


	40. The Training Continues: Haos and Darkus!

**A/N: Okay, it's time for the second training chapter. But first, it's time for Review Response!**

**alxkend: Thank you. And yes, anyone reading this, please give us some cool ideas for our series: Bakugan Smashers Crossover Chronicles!**

**xXShikigamiXx: Well, alxkend and I already have a plan to do the Naruto and then the Pokemon crossover, but I have asked him this favor. We shall squeeze it in after the Speed Racer x-over, which is the fourth story in the series. If people don't want the Speed Racer, the Speed Punks x-over will take its place and Digital Dismay will be placed after that. Either way, it will be the fifth story of the series.**

**CloneGirl: Funny review! And thanks for voting!**

**PEJP Bengtzone: It's fine. To be honest, where I live in this great country known as the USA, not a lot of channels have anime and nearby stores aren't all that famous for containing manga. I do know about Winx Club and Spectrobes, and yes, you're right. It would be very chaotic for those worlds. I have actual beat my former friend's Spectrobes game. It's fun! I even got each Spectrobe! However, I did not buy the first or second game for myself. So, Bakugan Smashers should be in the crossover section, huh? Okay then. I'll do it right after I submit this chapter.**

**gossipxgirl: Thank you! I'm glad you like it!**

**super64: Mario vs. Sonic, huh? I might check that out if I have time! And, as for your question as to why it's here in the Bakugan archive, it's because it takes place in the Brawlers' world and also Vestroia. Very few chapters will be with Smash World. But, it will be in the crossover section soon.**

**inunarufreak: Well, it's quite simple. The reason is because all of the other Smashers help save Smash World in much later chapters.**

**animexxx: Thanks! I'm always glad to know how many people love this story.**

**Well, here is the poll for now:**

**Poll 1:**

**All Five: 3 votes. (Kazo the Hedgehog, xXShikigamiXx, and PEJP Bengtzone)**

**Season 1: 1 vote. (CloneGirl)**

**Poll 2.**

**Here are the people that want the two x-overs: alxkend, PEJP Bengtzone**

**Here are the people that don't want them: Kazo the Hedgehog, Frost the Hedgehog, and an unknown person without an account.**

**I need more votes, people!**

**Okay, now on to the story!**

The warm summery air blew through the area outside of Dan's house. That was where they moved to so that they could try training in different areas. The backyard was large enough for battles, and the sun shone on the still dew-covered grass, making the ground a shining green. It was perfect for a battle.

"Okay, so, who's going to do their training now?" Runo asked.

"How's about the Haos and Darkus ones?" Joe said. Runo nodded in total agreement. She really wanted to test Tigrerra's Tiger Slash ability. The only other ones were Samus, Pikachu, and Tentaclear. Lars Lion and Wayvern were already at their Ultimate level, and their Ability Cards were already known. As for Darkus, there was only Mewtwo, Ganondorf, Meta Knight, Reaper, and Zorano. They already knew Hydranoid's and Exedra's effects.

"Okay, the first set of battles will be the Haos! First up, Pikachu vs. Tigrerra!" shouted Dan like some referee. Runo and Pikachu took their spots, and they did a coin flip to determine the card thrower. It ended up being Runo. She threw the Area 12 Gate Card and the short battle began.

********Training Simulation********

"Okay! Tig, use Tiger Slash now!" Runo said. Tigrerra charged at Pikachu, and his Gs were dropped by 200.

"That all? Well, take this! Thunder!" Lightning zapped the field, causing major damage to Tigrerra.

_**Tigrerra power decrease of 250 Gs.**_

"Take this! Lightning Shield!"

_**Pikachu power decrease of 100 Gs.**_

"So? I'm still at 250! What could you possibly be trying to gain?"

"I just want to see if you'll revert back to a Pichu, is all." Runo said. Lucario was also curious. He knew that if he or Pikachu went below 100 Gs, they'd devolve. So, if Pikachu did, he knew that he would as well.

"Oh, is that all? Well then, just activate a strong one, or get two together!" Pikachu said.

"Take this then! Wall Burst!"

_**Pikachu power decrease of 100 Gs.**_

"Just one more!"

"Okay then! I'll activate another Lightning Shield!"

_**Pikachu power decrease of 100 Gs.**_

Pikachu expected that he would devolve at any moment, however, he didn't. Smirking, he began to unleashed his array of moves, each of them varying differently (as I said, skipping over Pokemon and Mario).

"Okay, Gate Card, close!" Runo commanded, bring her Gate Card back.

********End Battle********

"So, who's next?"

"Samus vs. Tentaclear," Julio responded. Samus nodded. This would be good. She threw and opened the Gate Card, Julio threw Tentaclear, and the battled ensued.

********Training Simulation********

"Okay, now to show you who's boss! First, my Charge Beam!" The spherical attack got to full size.

_**Samus power increase of 175 Gs.**_

"Oh, yeah? Take this!" Julio shouted. "Ability Card, activate! Triple Flare Blinder!" Tentaclear's eyes glowed, and Samus couldn't use any of her moves.

"It's just the same thing!" Dan groaned.

"Nope! This also prevents the use of Gate Cards! However, Area 12 isn't affected. Oh well..." Julio said. The light then faded. Samus then launched her Missile, and it hit Tentaclear.

_**Tentaclear power decrease of 100 Gs.**_

"Grr! Can this just hurry up?! I'm gettin' tired of watching Tentaclear get beat!"

"It's only the second of many. Now for the third. Screw Attack!" She jumped into the air and was surrounded by electricity.

_**Samus power increase of 150 Gs.**_

"Wow. Very impressive," Julio grumbled sarcastically.

"Don't worry. I just have to do my Bomb attack and Ball Form, and then I can test my newer moves!" Samus said excitedly. She jumped over Tentaclear and turned into her Sphere Form. The electric Bomb came out and hit Tentaclear, lowering his Gs by 100. It also would've destroyed the Gate Card, but it was Area 12.

"Finally. Just three more, then your Final Smash to test your other four moves..." Julio grumbled, lying in the grass. "Let me know when you're done. By the way, Tentaclear's Gs are at 300, so I guess I should activate this. 990 G Gain. I can only use this with Area 12." He threw it lazily, and Tentaclear's Gs shot up. Samus then turned into her Sphere Form, which would prevent Gate Cards from working on her.

"Okay. Now for my Freeze Ray!" The beam of ice blasted from her arm cannon, and it hit Tentaclear. He couldn't attack. "Nice. Now, Phazon Beam!" The electric beam shot out, cracking the ice. It caused Samus' Gs to increase by 200, and Tentaclear's Gs decreased by the same amount.

"Sheesh, this training is _boring_!" Julio grumbled. Samus went into her Ball Form.

"With this, any attack from a Bakugan isn't as effective!"

"Are you done yet?"

"Almost. Now....Zero Laser!" The blast sent Tentaclear into a Training Defeat. Her armor fell off, but the girls kept their boyfriends from even remotely glancing. Julio, Christopher, and Komba were turned away by their Bakugan. For some reason, her Gs didn't decrease by 10 like normally.

"So, what's next? Your Paralyzer?" Julio asked. Nodding, she shot it. However, instead of just preventing an attack, Tentaclear was lowered by 40 Gs as well. "What?!" Samus smirked with delight.

"Okay, next, my Plasma Whip!" It cracked and sparked with blinding speed, leaving a welt on Tentaclear. It also lowered his Gs by 50. Samus' increased by 20.

"Ouch!" Tentaclear yelped.

"Aw, that couldn't have hurt that much. Now, Plasma Wire!" She brought it up and spun, which would've hurt a Ventus Bakugan.

"What's the last one?"

"It's my Flip Jump," Samus replied. She quickly jumped into the air, her whip making a shield of some sorts. It increased her Gs by a mere 50, however.

"Alright! Done with Haos!" Julio cheered. Samus called a Gate Card, close, and the Area 12 was returned.

********End Battle********

"Okay, so now let's take care of Mewtwo vs. Hydranoid, even though Hydranoid doesn't need to do anything."

"Alright!" Mewtwo said.

********Training Simulation********

"Gate Card, set!" Alice yelled. Hydranoid and Mewtwo were on the card. "Gate Card, open! Area 12!"

"Now, let's do this!"

"Ability Card, activate! 990 G Gain! Now, it's all yours, Mewtwo!" Mewtwo went through his large moveset. He jumped off, but the card was still open.

"Okay, now, Meta Knight!" Mewtwo hollered. Meta Knight glided onto the card.

"Ability Card, activate! Venomous Beast Torrent Attack!" Hydranoid went back to Alice and Reaper popped out.

"Nice trick," Meta Knight said. "Now, let's do this!" Meta Knight drew his sword and spun around at mach speed. His Gs increased by 180.

"Oh, yeah? Take this! Ability Card, activate! Darkus Slash Frenzy!" Reaper brought out his twin scythes, and the started to glow a sickly purple. He sliced Meta Knight ten times, decreasing his Gs by a shocking 250.

"Dang, that's powerful," Meta Knight said. "Now, taste my Drill Rush!" Meta Knight thrust his sword forward as he spun, stabbing Reaper repeatedly and Lowering his Gs by 190.

"Geez, being Ultimate sure give you Smashers perks!" Reaper commented. Nodding, Meta Knight then used his Shuttle Loop to fly into the air, do a loop, and then stab Reaper in the gut. "Ouch!" His Gs were lowered by 100.

"Okay, now just two more!" Meta Knight said. "Now for my Dimensional Cape!" Meta Knight warped, which would make Gate Cards useless against him. "Now, behold my power!" he said as he hit Reaper with his cape. The whole area was pitch black. In a flash of white light, Reaper was slashed into a Training Defeat. Alice returned the card.

********End Battle********

"So, out final battle is...Ganondorf vs. Zorano?" Dan asked. Everyone nodded. Ganondorf was the thrower, and he got on. Dammy threw Zorano down, and they were ready!

********Training Simulation********

"I'll start the battle," Ganondorf said. He drew his fist back and it was engulfed in violet flames. He thrust it with incredible speed. It made Ganondorf's Gs increase this time by 270!

"Whoa..." Zorano said. "But, you can't beat this! Now, Dammy!"

"Ability Card, activate! Spellbinding Blast!" A few symbols appeared and spun in front of Zorano, and she held out her hand. From the center of the circle came a blast of white and purple energy that sent Ganondorf into a Training Defeat. "Ha! Take that!"

"Oh, I'm far from done." He ran forward and grabbed Zorano's neck (don't ask me how, okay?!), and she was instantly burned. She jumped back, patting out the purple flames. Her Gs had decrease by 180.

"Grr...." Then, Ganondorf jumped into the air, grabbed Zorano, did a small explosion, and jumped back down. This decreased her Gs by 110. Then, he did a sliding kick with purple flames, making his Gs increase by 100.

"Just two more!" He then did his Final Smash. His roar prevented the use of Ability Cards, and then he sent Zorano into a Training Defeat.

"Ow....okay, what's your final one?"

"I activate my Triforce of Power!" It made his Gs steadily increase until the others stood in shock. It increased his Gs by double his base level! That was an increase of 1100 Gs!

"Incredible!" Dammy said in temporary awe.

"Okay, now we're done! Let's go in and rest. Tomorrow, we're doing Ventus and Pyrus!" Dan said, excited to see Supreme Drago's new abilities. Joe finished the results:

Ultimate Tigrerra

Tiger Slash: Decreases opponent by 200 Gs.

Pikachu

Thunder Jolt: Transfers 70 Gs from opponent to Pikachu.

Skull Bash: Pikachu's Gs increase by 165.

Quick Attack: Allows Pikachu to attack first with a slight G boost: 10-50.

Thunder: Decreases opponent by 250 Gs.

Volt Tackle: Increases Pikachu's Gs by 200.

Thunder Wave: Prevents opponent from attacking.

Double Team: Increases Pikachu's chances of negating an attack regularly.

Slam: Increases Pikachu's Gs by 135.

Thunderbolt: Decreases opponent by 210 Gs.

Feint: Pikachu can attack an opposing Bakugan while negating any abilities.

Agility: Allows Pikachu to attack at beginning of anyone's turn.

Discharge: Decreases all Bakugan on field by 170 Gs.

Light Screen: Abilities that lower Pikachu's Gs aren't as effective.

The Light Ball increases these effects by 1/3.

Ultimate Tentaclear

Triple Flare Blinder: Prevents opponent from using Gate or Ability Cards.

Samus

Charge Beam: Samus' Gs increase by 175.

Missile: Decreases opponent by 200 Gs.

Screw Attack: Increases Samus by 150 Gs.

Bomb: Decreases opponent by 100 Gs and destroys Gate Card.

Zero Laser: Defeats opponents in line of sight.

Ball Form: Makes attacks less effective.

Freeze Ray: Opponent can't attack.

Phazon Beam: Transfers 200 Gs from opponent to Samus.

Paralyzer: Opponent can't attack and its Gs are lowered by 40.

Plasma Whip: Decreases opponent by 50 Gs and increases Samus' by 20.

Plasma Wire: Decreases opposing Ventus Bakugan by 70 Gs.

Flip Jump: Samus' Gs increase by 50.

Mewtwo

Shadow Ball: Mewtwo's Gs increase by 280.

Confusion: Decreases opponent by 100. Opponent's cards may not work.

Teleport: Goes to another Gate Card.

Disable: Prevents opponent's use of one Ability Card.

Shadow Storm: KOs opponent in one blast.

Psych Up: Allows Mewtwo to use the effects of all your opponent's cards.

Miracle Eye: Makes other Darkus Bakugan more affected by cards.

Mist: Negates any Ability Cards used on Mewtwo by opponent.

Psycho Cut: Increases Mewtwo's Gs by a shocking 300.

Amnesia: Negates any of opponent's cards used on Mewtwo.

Power Swap: Switches Gs with opponent.

Guard Swap: Switches Ability Cards with opponent.

Psychic: Lowers opponent by 120 Gs.

Me First: Steals opponent's just used Ability Card and uses it.

Recover: Increases Mewtwo's Gs by 225.

Safeguard: Mewtwo cannot be affected by cards for three turns.

Aura Sphere: Mewtwo's Gs increase by 100 at base and double with 100 G loss.

Ultimate Reaper

Darkus Slash Frenzy: Decreases opponent by 250 Gs.

Meta Knight

Mach Tornado: Increases Meta Knight by 180 Gs.

Drill Rush: Lowers opponent by 190 Gs.

Shuttle Loop: Lowers opponent by 100 Gs.

Dimensional Cape: Makes Gate Card ineffective against Meta Knight.

Galaxia Darkness: KOs opponent.

Ultimate Zorano

Spellbinding Blast: KOs opponent.

Ganondorf

Warlock Punch: Increases Ganondorf's Gs by 270.

Flame Choke: Decreases opponent by 180 Gs.

Dark Dive: Decreases opponent's Gs by 110.

Wizard's Foot: Increases Ganondorf by 100 Gs.

Beast Ganon: Opponent can't use Ability Cards and KOs that Bakugan.

Triforce of Power: Increases Ganondorf by 1100 Gs.

**Before you ask, yes, I said it would be faster, but I guess it wasn't. Sorry. It's just that typing three stories at once is hard to do. On top of that, I got this stupid research project for Honors English, and Honors Geometry is killin' me! Of all the times I wish I wasn't so smart...**


	41. The Training Ends: Ventus and Pyrus!

**A/N: Sorry I took so long! This actually took a bit shorter amount of time than I thought! Well, anyway, time for Review Response!**

**brave kid: Well, I'm glad you like the Training Arc. I hope you keep reading!**

**xXShikigamiXx: Thank you! So, you'll be a freshman next year, huh? I'm sure you might like high school. I'll be a sophomore next year. Yeah, research can bite.**

**alxkend: A Sega Game Gear, huh? Not bad.**

**super64: Well, actually, Master Hand is not evil. He only tests the Smashers in the games, and in SSBB, he is being controlled. Crazy Hand is just, well, crazy. A copy of Supreme Dragonoid? I don't know. Maybe. However, the final battle will have something REALLY surprising! ** **So, you want to leave a vote? Okay then. Place it in your review for this chapter. However, there is an announcement I need to make about that.** **Finally, WOW! You actually think that it should be a TV show?! That's the best review I've ever gotten!**

**mr. nice: Thanks for reviewing!**

**CloneGirl: Don't worry. Masquerade will be in the spotlight a bit more.**

**Pikana: Why thank you! So, you're a Masquerade fangirl and a Pikachu worshipper, huh? Interesting. I think you and CloneGirl may get along!**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Don't ask me how I know it was you; I just do. Well, anyway, the 9 stories are just the first batch. After they're done, we're planning to do more. If people decide that they want the Speed Racer story much later on, I'll do it then. ** **As for the shows you say I can check out, I've watched all of them but Galactik Football on Fox and Cartoon Network. They are interesting shows, especially Code: Lyoko. I love that show!** **In fact, I'm thinking about doing just one of the shows on your list. By the way, are those ones you DON'T want me to do, or are they ones you WOULD like to see?** **As for the anonymous reviews part, Kazo and Frost gave me they're opinions in person, as they go to my school. The third guy who doesn't have an account is some guy Kazo talked to on his bus.** **Combo moves, huh? That does sound quite interesting! And I'll definitely tell Kazo about your idea. Hope you keep reading!**

**King Dedede: Well, maybe a little bit. But, that makes the battles more interesting!**

**Okay, now on to the chapter!**

The park was beginning to fill with spectators, looking forward to see all of the training. Speedy, Amy, and Tails were on a bench, overlooking the action. The rest of the Smashers and Brawlers were in the field, ready to battle. Masquerade was developing his drum style.

"Wow, Masquerade, you're getting really good at that!" Alice complimented.

"Yeah, I have to say, you are doing well!" Michael said. Masquerade grinned sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head.

"Well, I may be good, but you should see Sonic strumming! He must've practiced for years!" the Darkus Guardian replied. Sonic blushed.

"Is that so, little bro?" Speedy asked. Sonic nodded. "Maybe we should have you two do a little performance for an intermission!" He suggested. The rest of them cheered at Speedy's idea.

"Well, first, let's cover the Ventus. How many of you just have your Special Attacks?" Shun said.

(I have no idea why I sometimes called them Smash Attacks. Curse you, Kazo! Making me look like an idiot for getting the terms mixed up!)

Kirby, Yoshi, and King Dedede raised their hands.

"Alright!" Kirby cheered. "I'll go first!"

"I think you should face Harpus," Chan said. Komba cheered with delight, as he didn't have much action. They took their positions, and Kirby threw the Gate Card. He jumped on, opened it, and was ready for action!

********Training Simulation********

"Bakugan, brawl! Harpus, stand!" Komba yelled as he threw her onto the Gate Card. In a somewhat bright flash of green, Harpus appeared and took her stance.

(I'm going to try to be a bit more descriptive in the battle scenes.)

"Hey, Komba, I bet you don't know that my Inhale has been upgraded!" Kirby chirped.

"Say wha? How?"

"Well, you can't tell since there's only one Gate Card, but you know how before when I sucked in a Bakugan from another card, it only let me bring it to mine?"

"Uh… yeah?" Komba said, confused.

"Well, now, I can copy the ability of the Bakugan I bring in!"

"What?!" Harpus yelled. "That's not fair!" Then, Kirby used his Inhale and sucked up Harpus. He spat her out, and he had green and white hair like Harpus. He was now Harpus Kirby. While Harpus fumed at being sucked up, Kirby began to charge his Hammer attack. His Gs increased by 140.

"Harpus, look out!" Komba said.

"Uh oh! He has higher Gs! Do something!"

"Ability Card, activate! Harpy's Rage!" Harpus shot out a blast of light green wind, dark green feathers from her wings, and golden arrows from her long, golden fingernails. It caused Kirby's Gs to decrease by 250. Her Gs increases by 100. Kirby's Hammer disappeared, and then he took Harpus' stance. He also shot a Harpy's Rage attack. It broke off one of Harpus' fingernails. Now, his Gs were at 540, and Harpus' were at 400.

"I can't believe you, Kirby! You broke one of my nails!" Harpus screeched. Kirby groaned as he jumped into the air and pulled out his sword. He was ready to do his Final Cutter attack. His blade carved Harpus as he went up. Then, he did a front-flip, which caused more damage.

'What is it with stupid girls and their obsession with fingernails!?!' Kirby mentally yelled as he did the front-flip. He then went straight down. After that, Harpus' Gs decreased by 240.

"HOW DARE YOU INSULT US LIKE THAT, KIRBY?!?!" all of the teenage females yelled. Kirby then realized he didn't just scream that mentally.

"Uh oh…" At that time, the hair turned into a star that flew off, and he was back to normal. Harpus charged at Kirby, fingers outstretched, but the pink puffball jumped into the air at just the right time. After doing his maximum number of float jumps, he did his Stone attack and turned into a 100 ton weight. He crashed down onto Harpus and slammed her into the Gate Card. However, since it was Area 12, it was not negated.

"Okay, Kirby, so… what's the final move?" Komba asked, trying to restrain Harpus from beating the crap out of Kirby.

"It's my Final Smash, Cook Kirby!" Kirby said excitedly. Kirby donned his chef gear, rung the bell, and Harpus was sucked into the pot. After a few seconds, she was launched back out, and a few random Ability Cards popped out. Dan caught them. "Okay, Gate Card, close!" The Gate Card vanished as it returned to Kirby.

********End Battle********

The teenage girls were a pack of rabid dogs after a stunned cat. Kirby was in deep trouble. As the guys watched in amazement and horror, Kirby got his butt handed to him. Harpus scratched him up badly, and the audience that was made of a lot of kids and a few adults laughed.

Then, Shun and Yoshi took their positions. Shun threw the Gate Card, threw Skyress, opened the card, and began the next battle!

********Training Simulation********

Yoshi jumped on the Gate Card, ready to fight!

"Okay, let's go!" Yoshi said.

"Skyress, attack!" Shun ordered. Skyress charged at Yoshi.

"I'll just use my Egg Lay!" Yoshi said. Yoshi's long tongue stuck to Skyress, and she was pulled into Yoshi's somehow huge stomach. She then somehow came out his… ahem… other end as a white egg with green spots. Shun stared, and stared, and kept on staring.

"Huh?!" Shun managed to squeak out after rubbing his eyes to make sure he wasn't seeing things. Dan chuckled at seeing his best friend like that. After cracking out of the egg, Skyress was lowered by 100 Gs. Shun growled, but then he pulled out an Ability Card. "Ability Card, activate! Crossing Winds!" His Ventus Manion floated into the air and landed on the Gate Card. In another flash of green, Manion returned to its normal form. The two charged at Yoshi.

"Have a taste of my Egg Roll, buddy!" Yoshi said as he encased himself in an eggshell. Kirby, who was now on a bench recovering, drooled.

"Mmmm…..egg roll…" Kirby said. Yoshi slapped his own forehead in frustration at Kirby's strange behavior. He then started to spin very fast. He charged at Skyress and Manion, and his Gs increased by 200.

"That's not bad for someone who's never battled," Shun said. Yoshi hit the two Ventus Bakugan, and it knocked them back a bit.

"Thanks!"

"Now, enough talk! Ability Card, activate! Crossing Winds!" A Ventus Monarus went onto the field, and in a flash of green and a light green tornado, the butterfly/fairy like Bakugan appeared.

"Okay then, now for my Egg Throw!" Yoshi said. He threw an egg, and the explosion hit all three. It lowered their Gs by 150 each.

"Now to test Skyress' ability! Ability Card, activate! Tornado Destruction Apocalypse!" The three Bakugan blasted three gale force tornadoes at Yoshi, who was sent into a Training Defeat. Shun skipped his next turn, and Yoshi was able to do his fourth attack.

"Boop, baring, ha!" Yoshi shouted as he did his Yoshi Bomb. It slightly cracked the Gate Card, but it fixed itself. "Now for my finale! Super Dragon!" Yoshi activated the Smash Ball's power, and he grew large, white, feathered wings. He took to the skies and shot a stream of fire out of his mouth. All three of the Bakugan were sent into a Training Defeat. The second battle was over. Shun closed the Gate Card as Yoshi jumped off.

********End Battle********

"Alright! That was cool!" Yoshi said.

"Okay, I think that you should face Oberus, King Dedede. I really want to participate in another brawl," Shiori said. The others nodded in agreement. King Dedede threw his Gate Card and opened it. The next battle was on!

********Training Simulation********

"Bakugan, brawl! Oberus, stand!" Shiori said as she threw her Ventus Bakugan. Oberus returned to normal form to begin.

"I'll just use my Inhale to start!" King D.D.D. yelled.

(I sometimes call Dedede D.D.D. for short.)

He opened his grotesquely large beak and sucked in Oberus. He then spat her back out after a second or two. Her Gs decreased by 30.

"What?! That's weak!" Dedede yelled. Shiori giggled at the penguin's ranting. "Oh well. Let's see how you like my Waddle Dee Throw!" He threw a Waddle Dee at Oberus, and her Gs decreased by 75.

"So, Waddle Doos do twice as much, which makes them 150, right?" Shiori asked. He nodded. "So, Gordos decrease by 225! Ouch!"

"Now for my special King Dedede Jump!" He jumped into the air and slammed Oberus, increasing his Gs by 190. "Now for my prized Jet Hammer!" He brought out his wooden hammer, fired the jets that appeared, and swung it full-force. It increased his Gs by a fair 200.

"Not bad! I don't think you ever used that move!" Shiori said.

(It's true. In all of the previous battles, most of the Smashers didn't use all of their moves. So, they aren't necessarily improved moves, since even I don't know what their original effects would've been.)

"Nope, I didn't. Now for the royal finale! Waddle Dee Army!" The massive blockade of creatures stormed and sent Oberus' Gs straight down to 0.

"Incredible!" said the Ventus hummingbird-like Bakugan.

"Gate Card, close!" King Dedede called. It returned to him, and Oberus returned to Shiori.

********End Battle*********

"So, who's next?" Julio asked.

"Just me and Link," Sonic replied.

"Okay then, Sonic, how about you face Skyress, and Link can face Harpus?" Samus suggested.

"Awesome!" they replied.

(I know I said I'd only skip Mario's and the Pokemon's battles, but I realized those two also have a long list, even bigger than Mewtwo's. So, most of their battles will be skipped as well.)

"Okay, so Sonic, let's go!" Shun said.

Shun threw the Gate Card to begin.

********Training Simulation********

"Okay, to start, I'll bring out Calibur!" he pulled Calibur out of his sheath.

_**Calibur recognized as Ventus Bakugan at 400 Gs. Combined power level of 950 Gs.**_

"Why the heck was it registered as a separate Bakugan?" Skyress asked.

"Because I have a conscious of my own, you twit!" the sword spoke. No one else could breath right. The sword… was talking?!

"Shut it, Calibur! Why do you always have to make a fuss about everything?"

"Do not talk to me like that you half-minded vermin! I am far superior to you!" Calibur yelled. Everyone watched.

"Stupid super-sized letter opener!"

"A hedgehog arguing with a sword just does not seem natural," Sara said.

"Calibur sure has an attitude," Dan said.

"Can we battle, please?" Shun said.

"Fine, fine, let us finish this…" Calibur stated. Sonic charged at Skyress and slashed.

"Ouch!"

"Okay, now let's see a Super Sonic attack with Calibur!" Sonic said.

"How? The Chaos Emeralds are still super! We can't have Knuckles call it back!" Tails said.

"I can use my Final Smash!"

"Oh, right," Tails said. Sonic activated the aura. But… something happened. Instead of turning gold, a strange flashing occurred.

"Uh, guys? I feel weird," he said. A flash occurred on his metal hand, and it turned gold. Then, a huge gold flash occurred, and gold metal started attaching to Sonic. Calibur shone bright silver and changed. Sonic recognized what was happening. When he was done, he had shining, golden armor that glistened in the sun with a pure light. It refracted the purest of beams, giving it a sort of rainbow shine. There were two glistening rubies on his visor that slightly resembled Super Sonic's eyes. Everyone oohed at the magnificent sight before them. Some were dumbstruck, some were complimenting, and Julie and Dammy were squealing about the shininess of it. Sonic also had a long, golden cape that couldn't even be described in words. Even the Bakugan were in the same state that the Brawlers, Smashers, Tails, Amy, and Speedy were.

"What just happened?" Skyress asked after enough staring.

"Behold the power of Excalibur Sonic!" they yelled.

"Excalibur?! Calibur turns into Excalibur?!" Zorano yelled. Sonic readied Excalibur by standing like Link did when he did his Spin Attack, charged his energy, and swung with a mighty force that increased his Gs by 280!

"Whoa! That's powerful!" Shun said. Skyress fired a gust, but the armor pulled Sonic to the side to dodge. The armor disappeared, Excalibur became Calibur, and Sonic went through the rest of his moves.

********End Battle********

Link battled Harpus, and he went through his moves as well. What they found the most interesting was that his Spin Attack was replaced with his Great Spin.

(You should know what the Great Spin is if you've played Twilight Princess.)

"Alright! I'm done!" Link said.

"Okay, so now that the Ventus are done, how about that intermission?" Dan asked. They cheered with delight. Sonic ran off and came back with his guitar. He then started to play while Masquerade started banging the drums. The others watched in amazement as Sonic and Masquerade did an instrumental version of the short version of His World by Zebrahead.

(I can't find the lyrics for this version and besides, it would take up too much page up. So, unless you have the song on a Media Player, sorry about your luck, guys.)

Masquerade beat the drums almost like someone who was close to being a pro! Sonic even placed the guitar behind his back and played expertly. Everyone in the park was cheering. Masquerade missed a few strums, but it wasn't highly noticeable. Dammy was like a rabid fangirl, and the rest of the Brawlers and Smashers were having a blast listening. They finished, and Dammy tackle-hugged Masquerade. It was now time for the Pyrus.

"I thought only King Arthur could hold Excalibur," Zorano said.

"Well, guess who the real King of Camelot is!" Sonic said. It clicked almost immediately. Everyone gaped. Was Sonic really ending up replacing a lot of ancient protagonists?

"Okay! Now it'll be Mario vs. me and Drago!" Dan said. "I'm going to test and see if our powers can power up the Bakugan!" Mario nodded.

"Let's-a go!" Dan threw his card to begin the battle!

********Training Simulation********

"Okay, Bakugan, brawl! Drago, stand!" Drago returned to normal, and Mario jumped on.

"Let's do this! First, Pyrus!" His symbol appeared and glowed, causing Drago's Gs to shoot up big time. Dan stared at his Bakupod. It stopped when Drago was at 2500 Gs.

"Wow! My guess was right! A 500 G increase! That's higher than what you can get with a regular Ability Card!" Dan said, slightly impressed. The other Guardians were excited about this.

"That's-a cool!" Mario said.

"Now, Ability Card, activate! Infinite Pyrus! You may find this a bit extreme, but it increases Drago's Gs by 6 times the total amount of Gs of all other Pyrus Bakugan on the field!" Dan said.

"WHAT?!?!" they all hollered. Mario's body glowed red, and then it went to Drago in six beams.

_**Drago power increase of 3300 Gs.**_

"Mama mia!" Mario hollered.

"Now to show this! Gate Card, set!" Dan threw another Gate Card. "Now, Ganondorf, I need you to get on the card!"

"Um… okay," Ganondorf said, stepping on.

"Nice, now for my second card! Silent Pyrus!"

"What-a the?!"

"This card does the same thing as Infinite Pyrus, but it uses Darkus Bakugan!" A purple aura appeared around Ganondorf and went to Drago.

_**Drago power increase of 3300 Gs.**_

"Okay, Ganondorf, you can get off now." He did so. "Now for my final card, Power of the Cores!" A rainbow beam and a lavender beam hit Mario and sent him into a Training Defeat. Dan skipped his turn. "Now it's all yours!" Mario went through his VERY long barrage of items. Then, Dan closed the Gate Cards, and they returned to him.

********End Battle********

"CF, it's your turn!" Sara said. CF threw the Area 12 Gate Card and opened it. He walked on, ready to go! "Bakugan, brawl! Solero, stand!" Solero revealed his form to the rest of the group. Then, Chan threw Fortress, as he had a new Ability Card as well.

"Okay, I'll go!" Chan said. "Ability Card, activate! Pyro Bomb Blaze!" A few fireballs spewed from Fortress, increasing his Gs by 250.

"My turn! Ability Card, activate! Phoenix Sol Flare!" Sara yelled. A blaze came out from Solero, and it turned into a mighty phoenix that was as bright as the sun! It attacked Fortress and CF, and it sent half of their Gs to Solero.

"Falcon… PUNCH!!!" Falcon's Gs shot up by 270, and his flaming fist hit Fortress.

"That's as potent as Warlock Punch!" Ganondorf said, impressed with the racer.

"Now for my Raptor Boost!" CF ran up and grabbed Solero by his large neck, causing a small burst of flames. It decreased Solero's Gs by 160. "Next, my Aerial Dive!" Falcon jumped into the air and grabbed Fortress, kicked him, and then jumped off making a small explosion. Fortress' Gs were decreased by 150.

"What's your fourth move?"

"Falcon Kick!" CF said, running then sliding on the ground, his foot slamming into Solero.

"Ouch!" Solero said. CF's Gs were increased by 200.

"For my finale, C'mon! Blue Falcon!" No sooner had he said that, the dreaded Blue Falcon rammed the two Pyrus Bakugan onto a racetrack that came out of nowhere. They looked forward to see CF in the Blue Falcon, and he was heading for them. The vehicle rammed them at full speed, sending them into a Training Defeat.

"Okay! We're done!" Sara said. CF closed the Gate Card, and they went back to Marucho's house. Joe saved the list for Ventus and Pyrus. It was:

Kirby

Inhale: Brings one opposing Bakugan to Gate Card and/or copies Bakugan on card with Kirby.

Hammer: Increases Kirby by 140 Gs.

Final Cutter: Decreases opposing Bakugan by 240 Gs.

Stone: Prevents Kirby from getting attacked and destroys Gate Card.

Cook Kirby: KOs opponents and sends out random Ability Cards.

Ultimate Harpus

Harpy's Rage: Decreases opposing Bakugan by 250 Gs and increases Harpus by 100 Gs.

Yoshi

Egg Lay: Decreases opposing Bakugan by 100 Gs.

Egg Roll: Increases Yoshi by 200 Gs.

Egg Throw: Decreases all opposing Bakugan by 150 Gs.

Yoshi Bomb: Destroys Gate Card.

Super Dragon: KOs all opposing Bakugan on the field.

Ultimate Skyress

Tornado Destruction Apocalypse: If you have three Ventus Bakugan on the field and one of them is Ultimate Skyress, you win the whole battle.

King Dedede

Inhale: Decreases opposing Bakugan by 30 Gs

Waddle Dee Throw: Decreases opposing Bakugan by 75, 150, or 225 Gs

King Dedede Jump: Increases Link's Gs by 190 and destroys Gate Card.

Jet Hammer: Increases Link's Gs by 200.

Waddle Dee Army: Lowers all opposing Bakugan to 0.

Sonic

Homing Attack: Attacks weakest opposing Bakugan on the field.

Spin Dash: Increases Sonic by 190 Gs.

Spring Jump: Sonic can evade attacks.

Spin Charge: Increases Sonic's Gs by 260.

Super Sonic: Increases Sonic by 50 Gs per second and is invincible.

Dark Super Sonic: Increases Sonic by 55 Gs per second but can be affected by cards.

Hyper Sonic: Increases Sonic by 100 Gs per second and is invincible.

Dark Hyper Sonic: Increases Sonic by 105 Gs per second but can be affected by cards.

Ultra Sonic: Increases Sonic by 200 Gs per second and is invincible.

Shield: Halves damage done by attacks for one turn.

Fire Shield: Negates Pyrus attacks for two turns.

Bubble: Negates Aquos attacks for two turns.

Magnet Shield: Attracts rings. Only works with Field of Rings.

Invincibility: Sonic can't be affected by opponent's cards.

Sonic Wind: Lowers opposing Bakugan by 230.

Flame Ring: Destroys Gate Card.

Bounce Bracelet: Evades attack from opposing Bakugan.

Magic Hands: Defeats one opposing Bakugan and can throw it at another.

Time Break: Opposing Bakugan can't attack for three turns.

Speed Break: Sonic can attack for three extra turns.

DarkSpine Sonic: Increases Sonic by 320 Gs and extends Time and Speed Break.

Calibur: Sends Calibur into battle.

Excalibur Sonic: Sonic's Gs increase by 330 and he can evade all attacks.

Sonic the Werehog: Sonic is increased by 310 Gs and can attack a Bakugan on another card.

Link

Hero's Bow: Increases Link's Gs by 170.

Gale Boomerang: Prevents opponent from using Ability Cards.

Great Spin: Increases Link's Gs by 240.

Bomb: Lowers opposing Bakugan by 180 Gs and destroys Gate Card.

Triforce Slash: Defeats targeted Bakugan.

Double Clawshots: Decreases opposing Bakugan by 40 Gs.

Fire Arrows: Decreases opposing Bakugan by 100; decreases Ventus by 150.

Ice Arrows: Decreases opposing Bakugan by 100; decreases Aquos by 150.

Light Arrows: Decreases opposing Bakugan by 100; decreases Darkus by 150.

Mirror Shield: Reflects Pyrus, Aquos, and Haos attacks with full strength.

Spinner: Link can evade Subterra attacks.

Bombchu: Decreases any opposing Bakugan on the field by 180.

Bombling: Decreases any opposing Bakugan on the field by 170.

Water Bomb: Works like Bomb but also can use on Dive Mirage affected card.

Zora Tunic: Works like Dive Mirage. However, Pyrus and ice-based Aquos attacks are stronger.

Magic Armor: Negates any attack or Ability Card used on Link by opponent.

Iron Boots: Link can't be affected by Ventus attacks.

Dominion Rod: Link can control one opposing Subterra Bakugan.

Wolf Link: Increases Link by 200 and changes him to Ventus/Darkus. Also, Link can attack multiple Bakugan on the field.

Supreme Dragonoid

Infinite Pyrus: Increases Drago by 6 times the total Gs of all other Pyrus Bakugan.

Silent Pyrus: Same as Infinite Pyrus but works with Darkus types.

Power of the Cores: Defeats all opposing Bakugan on the field.

Mario

Fireball: Increases Mario's Gs by 130.

Cape: Deflects attacks.

(Note: The Cape Feather won't be used, as deflecting is better than evading.)

Super Jump Punch: Decreases opposing Bakugan by 120 Gs.

F.L.U.D.D.: Prevents opponent from using Ability Cards.

Mario Finale: Destroys all Bakugan in line of sight.

Hover Nozzle: Destroys Gate Card.

Rocket Nozzle: Mario can evade two attacks.

Turbo Nozzle: Mario can move to any Gate Card on the field.

Fire Flower: Increases Mario by 200 Gs and he becomes Fire Mario.

Fire Mario: Mario's Mario Finale can destroy all opposing Bakugan.

Ice Flower: Increases Mario by 200 Gs and he becomes Ice Mario.

Ice Mario: Pyrus and Aquos attacks are less effective against Mario.

Wing Cap: Mario can evade Subterra attacks for one turn.

P-Wings: Mario can evade Ventus attacks for one turn.

Raccoon Leaf: Mario can evade attacks for two turns.

Flying Star: Mario can evade attacks for three turns.

Tanooki Suit: Mario can evade attacks and is not affected by Gate Cards.

Kuriboh's Shoe: Mario can evade one attack.

Super Star: Destroys one opposing Bakugan.

Vanishing Cap: Mario can move to an adjacent Gate Card.

Boo Shroom: Same as Vanishing Cap.

Metal Cap: Mario can evade Aquos attacks for one turn.

Spring Shroom: Destroys Gate Card and lowers opposing Bakugan by 200 Gs.

Frog Suit: Weakens Aquos attacks on Mario, but increases Subterra ones.

Power Carrot: Decreases opposing Bakugan by 230 Gs.

Powerball Flower: Lowers all opposing Bakugan in line of sight by 250 Gs.

Bowser Shroom: Weakens Pyrus attacks on Mario.

Hammer Suit: Increases Mario by 260 Gs.

Magic Music Box: No Bakugan can attack.

Ultimate Fortress

Pyro Bomb Blaze: Increases Fortress by 250 Gs.

Ultimate Solero

Phoenix Sol Flare: Sends half of the total Gs of all opposing Bakugan on the field to Solero.

Captain Falcon

Falcon Punch: Increases CF by 270 Gs.

Raptor Boost: Decreases opposing Bakugan by 160 Gs.

Aerial Dive: Decreases opposing Bakugan by 150 Gs.

Falcon Kick: Increases CF by 200.

Blue Falcon: Defeats all opposing Bakugan in line of sight.

**Well, that concludes the Training Arc. I will currently be updating and slightly revising minor errors in earlier chapters, so the next chapter, which is the School Chapter, may not appear for a bit. Especially with WESTEST coming up, I need to focus a bit more. At least the essay is finished and turned in now! Also, I may change the abilities slightly. Maybe. If I missed some that I mentioned earlier, let me know.**


	42. School! Naga's Second Attack!

**A/N: Wow! Fastest update ever! Okay, people! The Training Arc is done, and it's on to school! What horrors will Naga and Metal Sonic bring to the schools along with the Shadow Bakugan? Find out! But first, I need to place the announcement I forgot about earlier.**

**If you haven't read my profile, alxkend and I will NOT be doing the Speed Racer crossover, and a DBZ crossover will be in the mix. We are, however, still doing the Storm Hawks crossover.**

**Now, time for Review Response!**

**alxkend: Background music is an excellent idea! As for your question about Michael, it's mainly because the Brawlers and Smashers are friends with him. But, the people that don't know him refer to him as Dr. Gehahbich or Dr. Michael. Also, the BakuDome idea is genius! As for some of the girls liking Masquerade in the Chaotic crossover, the flirters will be in dismay, not Dammy.**

**Pikana: Yes, you heard right! School. Don't worry, this may tend to be short. And trust me. I never get sick of being praised for this work.**

**sledgehammer the hedgehog: Thanks!**

**super64: I'm glad that you like where this story is going. I'm going to try to do more Bakugan vs. Smashers battles, as that's obviously the main appeal here.**

**mr. nice: I'm doing great work, huh? Thanks!**

**xXShikigamiXx: Well, school isn't going to be a lot of torture for the Brawlers. But some people will be in torture, no doubt! Just wait!**

**CloneGirl: You're slightly suspicious of the Masquerade fangirls popping up? Hm… Ah, well, it's not bad for that.**

**Natureking129: Thanks for your multi-review. Well, guess it's time for my multi-response! To start, no, there isn't another Natureking129. Well, let's see here. **

**#1. Yeah, you do have a solid point about the similarity between the beginning of Sonic games and the Prologue of this story.**

**#2. Yep, Drago is ultimately powerful! He kinda has to be!**

**#3. You find that interesting? Cool.**

**#4. The part about Kirby needing to wait is pretty funny. So, you like the Gold Ones info, hm? Nice!**

**#5. Yeah, I can't break away from classic pairings. They kinda need to stick.**

**#6. Yep, each has a different battle. That makes things a bit easier.**

**#7. You think it's going well from just here? Awesome!**

**#8. So, you're saying that Skyress' evolution to Ultimate Skyress has a cool description? Thanks! By the way, Skyress is female, not male. **

**#9. The story's getting exciting with the Smashers getting their Special Attacks? Thanks!**

**#10. I knew someone would respond to the midair battle thing eventually!**

**#11. Believe me; their Final Smashes do get VERY useful.**

**#12. Thank you! I'm very glad you like that idea!**

**As for the Tabuu thing, I won't be doing that, but they do face someone very powerful!**

**lucario cat star: Thanks a bunch!**

**For the school arc, the certain events in the schools will be separated by lines. I think you can figure out which means which.**

**We also have a new vote for Poll #1! Now the results are:**

**All 5 Seasons: Kazo the Hedgehog, xXShikigamiXx, PEJP Bengtzone, and alxkend.**

**Season 1: CloneGirl**

**Anyone who hasn't voted for this review poll, please do!**

**Well, time to go on to the story!**

The final weeks before school started were kind of uneventful for our heroes. Basically, the Vestroia Guardians learned new moves. However, this morning was started with a yell.

"WHAT?! What do you mean that WE have to go to school?!" Sonic yelled at the top of his lungs. Dan, who had a devilish smirk on his face, repeated himself.

"You can't stay in out world without at least seeing EVERY aspect of our life, and it's only one day for you guys. I've already arranged it with the Board of Education, so there's no getting out of it," Dan said.

"Are you planning to torture us?!" Sonic said as Speedy strapped a backpack on Sonic's unmoving shoulders.

"It's fine, little bro. Trust me. Teachers aren't so bad. At least they don't smack your and with a ruler if you lose place in a book like they did years ago. I know what that's like. Mother did that a lot when she taught me," Speedy explained. Marucho, Dammy, Sara, Alice, and Masquerade were the only Brawlers who didn't need to go.

"How come I'm going? I mean, you know how old I am?" Kirby said.

"You may be old, but you don't know a lot, Kirby," Samus explained as she shoved Kirby to the breakfast table at Dan's house. It was packed. The Smashers who didn't need to go were DK, Meta Knight, CF, Samus, Mario, Bowser, and Ganondorf. The rest, including Amy and Tails, were made to eat breakfast and rush out the door to Kato's limo.

Marucho was done with being home-schooled by his parents. He had an official degree. Sara logged onto her laptop to see the basics of her classes. After that, she confirmed reading the list, and the website for her first assignment popped up. She began typing away.

Back in the center of Vestroia, Naga and Metal Sonic were mobilizing their Shadow Bakugan forces. They were ready to go.

"Remember. I got the high school. Metal, you have the middle school, and the Shadow Bakugan will take care of the grade school," Naga said. They nodded and headed through a portal and into a tunnel.

So, in Wardington, most of the others were going to their schools. Yoshi and Kirby went to the grade school. Tails' intelligence got him to the middle school, so he went with Amy and Christopher. The others were at the high school.

hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

"I can't believe we have to come back here…" Shun growled.

"Why?" Sonic asked. They then heard deafening squeals coming from 'round the bend. A group of girls came charging, hearts in their eyes, directly for the ninja boy. Shun was surrounded!

"This is why!" he said over the girls constant pleas for dates and/or engagement. Sonic had a sweatdrop on the back of his head.

"Hey!" Alice yelled. "Shun's my…" The girls didn't hear her say anything. "That's it! Reaper! Hydranoid! Sic 'em, please!" she said. The two Bakugan made scary noises that sent the rabid fangirls running away screaming for a much different reason. Reaper swung his scythe and Hydranoid shot energy spheres at them until they got out of the building. They reverted back and got back on her shoulder. Alice walked up to a blue faced Shun. However, it was purple in some spots due to lipstick marks. "Are you okay, Shun?"

"I'm…fine…I think…." gasped Shun. Alice sighed.

"Does this happen a lot?"

"Unfortunately…" he sighed, wiping off the lipstick. The principal smiled at them.

"When does the stinkin' bell ring?" Sonic asked.

"In about 15 minutes. We have a lot of free time to hang around. Dan also made it to where all of us are in the same classes. By the way, what's the first?" Runo said. Dan opened the envelope.

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Meanwhile, Yoshi and Kirby polished off what was left of the breakfast bar.

"I wonder what our first class is," Yoshi said. Kirby got the envelope.

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Christopher and Tails were standing at the locker, when Amy got an angry look.

"I have the feeling someone else is going to get to my Sonic. I'm going to the high school," Amy said.

"You mean the human girls that think Sonic, as well as chao, are really cute?"

"Yeah, them. I'm coming, my Sonic!" Amy called as she ran to the high school.

"So, what class do we have first?" Tails asked. Christopher checked.

hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

"It looks like…" Dan began.

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

"First class…" Kirby said.

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

"Is…" Christopher said.

"ENGLISH?!?!" they yelled.

(Whoo! Hooray for strange coincidences giving them a boring class!)

Begrudgingly, our heroes and heroines went to their class as soon as the now severely dreaded bell rang. They took their seats.

hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

"Okay, kiddos!" said the strangely peppy teacher.

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

"Let's get started!"

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

"Alrighty, then."

hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Once they took their seats, a few girls near Sonic were cheering about his shortness making him cute. They about glomped him, but the door busted open to reveal an angry, pink hedgehog with a very, _very_ big hammer.

"STAY AWAY FROM MY SONIC!!!" she yelled. The girls recoiled, and Amy calmly sat beside Sonic.

"Thank the heavens!" Sonic said, relieved. "You showed up just in time!"

"It was no biggie. I sensed it rather quickly." The teacher blinked a few times before going over the basics of the class to the Brawlers. The Smashers just needed to watch.

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Kirby and Yoshi sat in the middle of the classroom, dodging hyper kids for their lives. The teacher tapped the board with a pointer, and they sat back down.

"Now, kids, Kirby and Yoshi will only be here for one day, so don't squeeze them and make them mad. Okay?"

"Okay!" they chanted.

"I…hate…school…." Yoshi said, flicking his tongue at anything. Kirby yawned.

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Christopher quietly listened to the teacher as Tails typed away. Tails then noticed the look of discomfort on the Aquos Brawler's face as the students were handed a huge English book.

hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

The students were marking their names in their books, and there were 15 minutes left.

Meanwhile, Naga and his forces were nearing the schools, ready to attack. However, they still were 10 minutes away. As if noticing, Dan stood up and looked out the window.

"Is there something wrong, Dan?" the teacher asked.

"I think, but I'm not sure. Man, of all the times I should've brought Drago. He'd know." Dan said. Even Sonic was uneasy.

"Hang on, I think I can find out," Sonic said. He ran off. Two minutes later, he came back.

"Well?" Runo asked.

"NAGA! METAL! SHADOW BAKUGAN! COMING HERE! SCHOOLS!!" Sonic said. They got the message. The teacher called the principal, and they started to evacuate.

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Kirby and Yoshi were getting the kids and teachers to move out as well.

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Christopher and Tails were in a panic, as no one was able to get down the stairs. Within minutes, ¾ of the student body was out, but Metal appeared and began to blast away. Tails rushed in and got the others, and Christopher shot out Juggernoid and Frosch, who began to attack him.

hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Naga got to the school, and saw no one outside. Smirking, he shot the first attack. He didn't realize that all of the students and faculty were at all the exits. Once the energy attack hit, they all ran out.

"WHAT?!?!" Naga yelled as they all got out. Before he could hit them, a blast of mud and dirt hit him. He shook it off, but then a gust of wind attacked him. He looked down and saw nothing. It was then that a stream of water and ice sent him flying. "Drago!"

"Naga!" Drago roared, with Apollonir flying right by him. They both shot a Pyrus attack.

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

The Shadow Bakugan were no match for the Smashers with the appetites. Kirby sucked up and spat out Shadow Bakugan toward each other, and eggs galore hit multiple entities.

hhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Naga was contacted within a minute by Metal Sonic, saying that he was badly damaged and all of the Shadow Bakugan were defeated. Naga growled.

"You win this time, Brawlers, but…I'll be back!" he warned. He flew off with Metal flying beside him. Once they were in the portal, Metal spoke.

"Master Naga, if some entity is going to destroy the earth for you, why did you decide to attack the schools anyway?"

"Well, the simple fact is…I sensed a disturbance in the force."

(HA! Star Wars reference!)

"What do you mean?"

"Some other being from the future knows how to stop it, and he's going to the Brawlers and Smashers to do just that. I tried to crush them to prevent that, but I guess it didn't work…"

"So…it's up to us yet again, huh?" Metal Sonic stated.

"Pretty much…" Naga sighed. They entered Vestroia, and then Metal and Naga began to heal. After that, Naga made an army of another 100 Shadow Bakugan.

Back on Earth, Christopher, Tails, Kirby, and Yoshi met up with the others. The three schools were completely collapsed, so they had no choice but to just let Drago, Apollonir, Fortress, Solero, and Dan burn the remains. The head of the Board showed up.

"This is gonna cost us out the butt, but the schools were old anyway. The new ones will be a lot better!" he said. "Even so, it'll take at least a year to build 'em all!" he groaned. He and his accomplices ran off, ready to plan. All of the kids could only say one thing.

"WOOHOO! NO SCHOOL FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR!!!!" They all ran home, and the Brawlers and Smashers returned to Dan's house to tell the others. They were relieved that no lives were lost. They then began to wonder Naga's reason for doing such.

Back on Smash World, Silver and Knuckles were working over time on the Green Hill stage. It was then that Silver's ears perked up.

"I guess it's that time. I'd better go," Silver said. He left the loop, leaving Knuckles confused. He walked up to Master Hand, who realized that day was coming. With a shake, Silver was granted permission to leave. He walked past Pokemon Trainer.

"Hey, Silver, where ya goin'?" he asked.

"Remember when I told you about our future, Red?" he asked.

"Yeah, I remember. Ivysaur's been going crazy. I think he's sensing it as well. You know, I don't know why Master Hand calls me Pokemon Trainer and not by my real name," Red said.

"I don't know. Did you say Ivysaur was going nuts? What about Squirtle and Charizard?" Silver asked.

"They're actually cowering and won't come out of their Poké Balls," Red explained. Silver chuckled.

"That's kinda funny to think about Charizard cowering. Well, I'd better go. See ya, Red." He got to Tails' lab, and Eggman, who was still recording, saw him walk down the stairway that led to Station Square. Using his telekinesis, he floated off to his destination.

**Well, this was a little shorter, but now the action begins to unfold! So, what is the evil entity that Silver knows how to stop? And how is it going to appear? Find out next chapter! Also, I've decided to wait until I finish the story to edit the probably multiple errors. I might also slightly upgrade the earlier battles with the newer Bakupod format and have the moves and cards actually shown!**


	43. Solaris Attacks!

**A/N: Hey, guys! Time for the good old Review Response!**

**alxkend: Yep, they sure did see that coming, and yes, poor Metal Sonic and the Shadow Bakugan.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: WHAT THE HECK?! PEJP, that was just minor character torture for comic relief from all the adventure! I mean not to be harsh, but you're making it sound like I put them through a heck of a lot of torture. If you really are from Sweden, your country may not find it funny, but kids here in the US love it when characters are forced to go to school.**

**Pikana: I'm not that fast of an updater, but I'll try!**

**super64: Yeah, but I guess you understand what those lines meant. h- high, e- elementary, m- middle.**

**mr nice: Too good to be typed?! Yowza! Another awesome review!**

**CloneGirl: I don't think English is boring, but I know a lot of kids, especially in my high school, hate it. I'm one of those guys who love to learn, yet I still love days off from school. I'm also a geek, in a way. I make straight A's! I've only had four report cards in my whole life that didn't and my lowest grade on a report card was a C! I'm a smart student!**

**xXShikigamiXx: I'm glad to know you like Silver showing up. And yes, Blaze will also be in this chapter.**

**Natureking129 (guest): Will do!**

After Naga's attack on the school, all of the Brawlers went to their respective homes. Marucho and the Smashers were in the skyscraper, of course. The birdbot was off, as it had just finished cataloging every part of Earth. However, it would be used again in case of a battle or world fusion. It was then that Kato heard a knock at the door.

"I'll get it, Master Marucho!" Kato said, walking down the steps. About 15 seconds later, he came back with a silver hedgehog following him.

"Silver! How are you, buddy?" Sonic asked.

"I'm fine, Sonic. Listen, Marucho, I need you to have Kato pick up the rest of the Brawlers. I have something important to say to you all," Silver said.

"What's da news?" Mario asked.

"Can't tell you yet. I'm going to tell you all at the same time," Silver explained. Samus was finished with putting her armor on.

"I'm sure it can't be that bad," she said. Marucho picked up the birdbot and turned it on, Eggman's face showing. They got into the plane and took off. Kato stopped over Dan's house, who flew aboard with his now mastered Nova Rocket technique.

"That's pretty cool that you can make fire rockets from your hands, and flame supporters from your feet," Silver said as Dan got in.

"I take it you're Silver the Hedgehog?" Dan asked. Silver nodded. They stopped over Runo's house. Lars Lion picked her up and reverted.

"Why didn't you use your Angel Path like in Night Palace?" Sonic asked.

"Shut it before I use my new Haos Sphere on you," Runo warned. Sonic shut up. As they flew over Shun's apartment, they saw Alice was standing by him. He threw his grappling hook around it and carried Alice bridal style. Shiori climbed up right behind them.

"He's such a show off!" Dan groaned. The three climbed inside.

"Neat trick!" Speedy said as the three settled in. They then picked up Joe and Chan.

"Hey, guys!" Dan said. They nodded. They flew over Dr. Gehahbich's mansion to pick up Masquerade. He appeared by using his Shadow Warp ability.

"Nice work with that move!" Runo said.

"Thanks." They then got Christopher onboard. They took off to Manhattan to get Dammy and Sara. At Bakugan Valley, they picked up Julie, Daisy, Billy, and Komba. At Germany, they got Klaus. Julio was the last one. As they settled in, Silver began to explain.

"Guys, before I begin, I have to admit that I lied to a lot of you Smashers."

"How so?" Pikachu asked.

"I'm not from some other area on Smash World. I actually hail from the far future," Silver explained.

"Dude!" Sonic said, impressed.

"I came here from the future, because of the state of the future Earth."

"What do you mean?" Dan asked.

"It's nothing but a barren wasteland."

"What?! How?!" Runo said, shocked.

"We don't know who, but on this very day, one of you is accidentally going to unleash a terrifying monster that is going to wipe out every human, animal, plant, and formation in existence," Silver said in all seriousness. The others were shocked into silence.

"No way! That's impossible!" Shun said, standing up.

"Shun, please, let me finish," Silver said. Shun growled, but listened.

"I came here from the future because I know how to stop it, but it needs to be done when it first appears. Otherwise, you're all doomed." The others looked at each other.

"Okay, so what is the creature?"

"It is an interdimensional creature known as… Solaris…" Silver said.

"What do you mean by interdimensional?" Drago asked.

"It embodies all aspects of time: the past, present, and future. It has to be beaten in all three times, or it regenerates."

"Freaky," Tigrerra simply stated. It was then that a purple cat appeared with seven emeralds around her.

"Blaze? Why do you have the Sol Emeralds?" Silver asked.

"I have a feeling that to prevent this again, they may need them."

"But, no one but you has Sol Energy."

"The Sol Emeralds are connected to the Chaos Emeralds, so Sol Energy can be used by beings with Chaos Energy, Silver," Blaze explained. Silver's expression was slightly surprised, but then it went back to being serious.

"Thanks, Blaze," Silver said. The two future-dwellers took a seat as they took off to who knows where.

"Why don't we head to Sonic's alternate Earth? We could find out a lot about it, and if it's where this Solaris appears, the sooner, the better!" Marucho said. They nodded. Kato took off to the continent. Once they landed, Sonic breathed in the familiar scent.

"Good times here," Sonic said, beginning to stroll around. They were currently in Station Square.

"Hey, is that stairway to Smash World still here?" Lucario asked. Silver nodded. They then saw that he was floating by using his psychokinetic abilities.

"Hey, Blaze, what power do you have?" Dan asked.

"Same as you, I'm a pyrokinetic," Blaze responded.

"Can you use the Sol Emeralds?" Runo asked, looking at them.

"Yep, I use them to become Burning Blaze."

"Hey, Silver, how are the other Smashers doing?" Mewtwo asked Silver.

"Roy and Ike are a bit jealous that Marth came and not them; Pichu, Jigglypuff, and Red are ready for when the Pokemon world is attacked; Snake is off fighting some Metal Gears; Luigi, Peach, Wario, and Dr. Mario are kicking back in Peach's castle since their world's been saved; Young Link, Zelda, and Toon Link are also relaxing slightly; Pit is constantly watching for any auroras or weather abnormalities; The Ice Climbers are going crazy guarding their mountain; Olimar isn't really needing to do anything; Fox, Falco, and Wolf are just continuing their rivalry; Mr. Game & Watch is just hopping around; Finally, Ness and Lucas are watching over Onett," Silver said, making sure to mention everyone.

"Dang. Well, they'd better be ready for any world fusions. They'd need a force to get one world. After all, they don't have our powers," Shun noted. The silver hedgehog agreed. They flew and walked around, even meeting with the eccentrically named Prof. Pickle. Soon, they arrived at a huge city with many lights and architecture.

"Hello there," said a random villager. They nodded to him and found a strange temple nearby. Curious, they walked inside to a chamber. At the end was a small, unlit candle. A young lady walked up to them.

"Excuse me, but might you be the Brawlers and Smashers?" she asked.

"Yeah, that's us!" Dan said.

"I'm Elise, the leader of this village. It's nice to meet you."

"What's with this candle?"

"Of that, I'm not sure. For some reason, it was remained unlit for eons, since this temple was built," Elise said.

"Do you mind if I…"

"No, not at all. It's just a candle."

"I don't know. I have a weird feeling in my gut about this…" Silver said.

"Well, if this huge thing called Solaris is released from the flame on that candle, then that makes it all the better! We won't have to worry about when!" Dan said, making sense.

"You actually made sense there," Sonic said. Dan warily created a small flame.

"Well…here goes…" Dan said. They got back far enough, and Dan shot it. Elise was worried about this…Solaris being. The flame lit, and everyone squinted.

"Phew!" they said. "Nothing here!" Dan sighed and took a step forward. Suddenly…

'WWHHOOOOSHH!' was the noise created from the flame. A huge beam shot out, and they could sense it absorbing Chaos Energy. It slowly took form in a destructive wave, pushing everyone back. They ran out to see some creature that looked almost like the eagle on Link's Hylian Shield, but it had a red eye.

"Link, did you notice that?" Pikachu asked, earning a nod.

"Is that it?!" Dan yelled over the pulsating energy that slowly started disintegrating the temple.

"Yeah, that's it!" Silver yelled. He focused and opened up two portals. "I'll handle the future!"

"I got da present!" Mario said.

"I'll take care of the far past!" Mewtwo said. Dan programmed his I-pod and played the 'Solaris' theme from _Sonic the Hedgehog '06. _Silver used the Chaos Energy to turn into Super Silver. The two jumped through, and Mario used his Flying Star to get up to outer space, where Solaris was waiting.

Sonic used Chaos Control to warp everyone, and Shun made an air bubble. They currently stood on the moon, watching the battle ensue. Mario was watching Solaris' every move. As soon as he saw an invisible blast make Solaris turn away, he saw his chance. Especially when Silver somehow called,

"Go, Mario!"

"Take-a dis, you creep! Mario…Finale!" He blasted Solaris with his upgraded Mario finale, creating the two red and orange dragons. It caused some major damage to the bird-like monster. Suddenly, Dan's Bakupod showed a picture of a city being destroyed in the present, and the remains of one destroyed in the past.

"Guys, hurry up!" Dan hollered, having Drago at the ready to fuel them up. A portal opened up. Drago shot energy from the Infinity Core, and it powered up Silver.

"Now, Mewtwo!" Mario hollered. Mewtwo heard and focused.

"Have a taste of my power! Shadow Storm!" The black laser hit the distracted Solaris, weakening him further. "Get 'em, Silver!"

Silver stood and faced him.

"I won't let you destroy the world and humanity, Solaris! Be gone!" Solaris sent a meteor at Silver, who in turn sent it back with his psychokinesis. It didn't do much, but it did enough. "Mario, use the Fire Flower!"

"On eet!" Mario said. Using the Fire Flower to become Fire Mario, he charged another Mario Finale. "Have some of dis! Hi-yah!" What emerged from Mario's Firebrand Gloves were not dragons, but white-hot phoenixes. "Wow-a!"

"Nice job!" Sonic said. "Go get 'em!" The phoenixes roasted Solaris, destroying his present form.

"Hurry, Mewtwo, Silver!" Marucho said, recording the battles from all periods of time. The two nodded and proceeded to attack.

"Past, present, future, no matter where you are, we will protect this universe no matter what!" Silver yelled as he threw a barrage of rocks at the beast. His future form was defeated.

"It's out duty to defend what we can and destroy any evil that we must. Die, Solaris!" Mewtwo said. "Shadow Ball!" He threw it at the beast. "Now, Shadow Storm!" The black laser hit the sphere, and it rammed into Solaris' chest. Mewtwo and Silver returned to the present.

"All right! We did it!" they hollered.

"Guys, I don't think so…" Speedy said. They watched as it slowly turned from being invisible, just like it was rematerializing. It took form again.

"What gives?! Is this thing invincible?!" Runo hollered. Naga and Metal were watching.

"How are they going to end up defeating that, Master?"

"I don't know how, but they just do. Meanwhile, let's try to get those Chaos Emeralds out," Naga said. They left to go back into Vestroia. The Brawlers and Smashers watched as it suddenly had six beams going toward it. Six of its eight appendages started glowing, each a different color.

"Is it just me, or are those the Vestroian colors of the elements?" Alice asked. They looked up to notice them completely.

"Holy crap…what the heck do we do now?" Masquerade asked. Silver looked in the two portals.

"At least this time he's only in the present! But we have to take care of him now! Look!" They turned to see a huge change in the Earth. At least one half of Europe was gone!

"Oh crap," Runo said, very worried.

"According to this they were saved. But it won't stay that way for long," Speedy said, holding Sonic's Bakupod. Dan growled and roared in anger, almost sounding like Drago. This greatly surprised everyone. It was then that a red aura surrounded him. He held out his hand.

"Pyrus! By the power of the Pyrus Guardian! Mega Fire Blast!" Dan fired the fire attack and it hit the red one. Suddenly, the red energy escaped from the wing-like object and back into Vestroia.

"That gives me an idea!" Runo said. "Haos! By the power of the Haos Guardian! Haos Sphere!" A yellow sphere surrounded her left hand. It started to shine, and then she thrust her arm forward, launching the attack at the yellow one. It also turned back to the light gold color. Marucho concentrated on the ocean below and brought some behind him.

"Let me try _my_ new Aquos attack! Aquos! By the power of the Aquos Guardian! Twin Aqua Dragons!" The water behind Marucho became two fierce, blue dragons that attacked the blue arm. It reverted next.

"Okay, my turn!" Julie said. "Subterra! By the power of the Subterra Guardian! Desert Storm!" She spun around and created a sandstorm from moon rock. It hit the brown appendage.

"My turn now," Shun said. "Ventus! By the power of the Ventus Guardian! Gale Blade!" He created the same high-speed sword he used in the Amazon Jungle.

"Nice name," Samus said. Shun threw it at the green wing.

"Now for the finale!" Masquerade announced. "Darkus! By the power of the Darkus Guardian! Shadow…Sword!" Everyone noticed their shadows disappear and take the form of a pure black sword.

"What?!" Sara yelled. "That…"

"What _hasn't_ defied the laws of physics?" Masquerade asked, knowing what Sara was about to say. Sara thought and nodded. Masquerade threw it and it hit Solaris' final glowing arm.

"I am not done yet!" the being spoke, for once. Suddenly, they could feel more Chaos Energy float into the beast, draining half of the Emeralds' power. Solaris became a gold that was like Super Sonic, and the energy waves were increasing greatly.

(Is it just me, or am I good at dragging out battles to enhance the action?)

"That's it! We can't hold back anymore! Tails, Speedy, get ready!" Sonic said. The three got in position. "Everyone, place your hands together!" Everyone managed to place their right hands together in the center, and seven spheres surrounded them. Sonic, Tails, and Speedy were somehow powering up the others!

Then, the two hedgehogs released their hands and turned into their Hyper Forms. Tails went into his Super Form. Silver didn't do anything. Then, the others found golden spherical auras around them, and they were floating in the air in a circle around the four. They split up into four groups of 10. Focusing hardly, they managed to create a laser.

"This time, you're going down for good!" they said. They shot the golden beam and finally destroyed Solaris. They reverted back as they landed. They turned to face the Earth. Europe was roasted, making Dan worried

"How are we gonna fix that?" Dan asked, his voice concerned. Runo grasped his hand tightly.

"Silver!" Sonic said. Silver looked at him. "I need you to open a portal to the past, as far as you can get it!"

"What are you planning?"

"I'm gonna destroy the candle is what," Sonic said, focusing on the Sol Emeralds. They surrounded him, and he absorbed their power. When it was done, Sonic's body was a yellow orange, and he had an aura that flashed the colors of fire. "Sol Sonic!" Silver opened a portal, and Sonic stepped through. He found himself in a white space, obviously the beginning of time. In front of him was the candle and altar. "Now, with this one attack, Solaris will never be accidentally released. Our worlds will be safe once more." Sonic charged a flame attack, and the candle was turned into gas. It was cooled, the wick was gone, and time changed. Sonic felt the white grow, and soon, he found himself back at Marucho's house.

"Hey-a Sonic, whatcha doin'?" Mario asked. Sonic blinked.

"Uh…nothin'," Sonic said. The Smashers were all in the living room, and soon, the Brawlers came over to hang out. Dan wanted to brag about his mastered moves, naturally.

"Hey, Sonic, what's on your mind?" Dan asked.

"Trust me, you would never believe it," Sonic said.

"Try us," Speedy said. They sat down, and Sonic began to explain about Silver, the future, Solaris, the battle, Earth's near obliteration, his newer form, him destroying the candle, and erasing the events from time to fix it. At the end, everyone had 'what did you eat this morning?' looks or just plain shocked expressions.

"Little bro, I do believe you; but if it is true, why are you the only one who remembers?" No one else believed Sonic's tale. Except for one.

"He isn't, Speedy," said a voice that surprised him.

"Mewtwo?" Marucho asked.

"With my large memory, I can remember things people would forget, even under the most extreme conditions and circumstances," Mewtwo explained. Everyone sat there. When Dan and Runo heard about their reaction, a light blush was on their faces.

"That's a crazy story. We should put that in our book!" Dan said.

"Speaking of which, do you have a design and a name for it?" Shun asked, knowing of Dan's lack of creativity.

"Actually, yes!" Dan said, pulling out a brown book out of his backpack. The leather seemed to gleam, as if it was new. In gold letters was the title: Tome of the Six Elements. On the cover was a large green ring, and on the back were jewels arranged in the pattern like the older Vestroia.

A ruby was for Pyrus, a chocolate diamond was for Subterra, a real diamond was for Haos, an amethyst was for Darkus, a sapphire was for Aquos, and an emerald was for Ventus. A green line connected each gemstone. Julie squealed.

"Oh my god it's beautiful!" Julie said, her eyes shining like the gems.

"I have to say; I'm impressed, Dan!" Shun said. Even the journal and diary entries were in alphabetical order by name! "Really impressed!"

"I was thinking we should include the rules for Bakugan at the beginning, along with each card and Bakugan we know of," Marucho said. Dan thought about it.

"That does sound like a good idea for if we go to any other worlds after this," Masquerade said. Dammy agreed.

"Yeah, who knows what other places we'll end up at?" Dammy said, making a pre-list. It was then that a portal appeared in their room, and out of it stepped Silver and Blaze. The Brawlers and Smashers pretended to not know who they were.

"I think this is the right place," Silver said. He turned to the group. "Hi, there. The name's Silver. This is my friend, Princess Blaze."

"Nice to meet ya!" Sonic said, shaking their hands. "So, what brings you here?"

"Well, I am a huge fan of you guys! I came here from the far future to see if I could get your autograph."

"And I came because these Sol Emeralds may be useful to you guys," Blaze explained.

"Cool! Thanks!" Dan said, taking the Sol Emeralds. The entire group signed their names on a paper-sized piece of poster board. Silver smiled gratefully, and the two future-dwellers left.

"Well, I say we've had enough sittin' around!" Pikachu said. The group began to enjoy the recent peace and quiet, and they spent the whole day talking.

"So, Shun," Dan asked. "Gale Blade, huh? Sounds cool!"

"Yeah, I guess. Did you name that move you used in Mute City?"

"You mean the short flames that kept me in the air? I was thinking of… Burst Flare," Dan said.

"That works! Speaking of moves, isn't it strange that Runo is the only one with a move that has the same name as an Ability Card?" Shun said.

"Definitely."

"Oh, I also have a name for that move I used to blow away the poison gas. Ventus Gale."

"It's okay. Well, I wonder what Naga's next move will be," Dan said.

"Who knows? Well, the day's almost done, so let's go back to our homes," Shun suggested. Everyone came back to hear that, and they agreed. Some warped, and some walked. The night was a peaceful one.

**Okay! The Solaris battle is out of the way! Next up comes a much bigger challenge to out heroes! Can they handle it?**


	44. Enter the Six Supervillains!

/N: Hey guys! Time for Review Response!

**xXShikigamiXx: You? Jealous of my multiple humorous events? That's something new to hear.**

**alxkend: I'm glad you like I added it.**

**Pikana: No, I didn't come up with the design. It's not exactly the same, but the design concept belongs to alxkend.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Regarding Speed Racer, I did say earlier that I may do the Speed Racer crossover much later on. I'll put another poll for it on sometime during Medabot Manic, since I'll have a lot more readers to vote.**

**Oh! So you were referring to the Shun thing! *starts laughing at self* Yeah, I see your point. I mean, the other few times and the fangirls were minor, but I guess I did get carried away with the blue-faced part. Heh heh….sorry, dude. I never thought anyone would take offense to it. Boy, was I wrong! Ha ha! Well, that's a problem we can fix up. Not doing it again wouldn't be noticed by other readers since you're the only guy who remarks about it, so that can easily be done, right?**

**I hope you can forgive that and continue to support this story. I want to have all the readers I can get, which I'm sure you can understand. Just please, next time you see something you don't like, just inform me instead of flaming. I really wanted to have a flame-free story, ya know?**

**super64: You think it'll be an awesome success? Why thanks! By the way, please vote for what season of Digimon you'd like to see by reviewing!**

**mr nice: Too awesome to be true? Thanks, man! So you, super64, and animexxx are all related? That's cool! And please, you should also vote!**

Marucho came bounding through Runo's restaurant to the large booth where the others were eating, very eager to tell them something.

"What's going on, Marucho?" Sara asked. "Did you find some huge stash of junk food?"

"Nope, even better! I now have four moves!" Marucho said cheerfully, ordering a hamburger at the same time. Alice came back in a minute with his meal, removed her work apron, and sat with the others. He hurriedly ate his hamburger.

"Really? What is it?"

"Follow me!" he said, running for a lake. Curious, the others followed after eating. Runo's parents watched them run out the door.

"Those guys are always on the go!" Runo's mom chirped. Runo's dad, who was watching dishes, agreed.

"Our little Haos Guardian," he said. When the Brawlers and Smashers got to the lake, they saw Marucho on a cliff.

"What are you doing, Marucho?" Dan asked.

"This name is copyrighted from Avatar: The Last Airbender. Enjoy!" Marucho jumped off and did a spinning cannonball. "Waterbending Bomb!" he hollered, making splashdown. Using his Aquos powers, he created a huge tower of water that overtook a tsunami! It fell near everyone, who was far back.

"Awesome, Marucho!" Dan said while the short blonde got out of the water. He pushed the water off, making him completely dry.

"So, exactly where should we go now?" Sonic said, wearing his sky-blue backpack. They were currently out of ideas. They decided that a simple walk through the rest of Sonic's alternate Earth would do. They passed through Soleana (I think that's how it's spelled), Station Square, and many other places that bordered on impressive.

In the center of Vestroia, Naga was contemplating.

"How can I stop those guys?" Naga said.

"What about summoning some evil villains like Drago said is possible? I could use Chaos Control to bring them here," Metal suggested. Naga thought for a while, trying to decide on what villains to summon. He punched his left palm. Metal smirked. This…would not be good for the heroes. Maybe…

As they walked past a desert city, they saw Naga and Metal appeared out of nowhere, causing a rainbow flash.

"Ha! Surprised to see me again?" Naga cackled.

"Give it up. Your plans have stunk so far. At least with your evil hybrids, it was a challenge," Dan said, angering the black and white dragon. But then, the growl became a smirk.

"That reminds me. I've brought in some reinforcements. Prepare to meet your demise, heroes!" Five portals opened up. The first revealed a young boy inside a spider-like machine.

"Hey! That's Porky!" Sonic said. The Smashers smirked. He wasn't much of a challenge. From the second emerged the strangest thing they had seen. It had no body. It was a gray head and arms, but it had a purple cape with lavender stars, like a magician. It had a yellow necklace with a red jewel on it, blue armor, and a strange helmet that had two long horns that pointed to each other.

"What the?" Meta Knight yelled.

"That's…eNeMeE!" Kirby said shakily. King Dedede was also nervous. From the third portal came out a purple and brown tank. Now all of the Smashers were nervous.

"Galleom!" Marth said. A metallic, black dragon with red eyes came out of the fourth portal.

"Isn't that Meta Ridley?" Samus asked. "Holy crap, it is!" It was then that the Earth started shaking where they stood. A humongous crevice opened, and a dragon's roar echoed out of it. Everyone got back to see a huge creature fly out of it. It had two stone heads pointing right and left for shoulders, and it had long, scaly arms. It had a serpent's body, and there was a giant eye on its head. Two other eyes were right next to the shoulders. Amy, Tails, and Sonic were shocked.

"That's Dark Gaia!" they said. It shot a beam of purple shadows, covering the area in a purple aura that slightly darkened everything. Then they watched as a humongous robot the size of Dark Gaia came out of the fifth portal. It had grey metal that was dark in some spots, clean in others, and rusted in fewer parts. It had a face of dark flesh and a mouth full of sharp teeth. Its dark red eyes showed pure evil. No one knew what it was.

"Hey, wait. Doesn't that thing look like anything from some movie?" Dan asked. It emitted a low growl.

"I got it!" Runo said. "Oh no…that's…that's…" All of them said the dreaded name at once.

"Megatron!"

(Whoo-hoo! I'm sure you were NOT expecting his appearance!)

Now, everyone was nervous, as he was quite powerful. It was then that Galleom transformed. Megatron growled.

"Hey! Transforming is my business, temporary sidekick. So help me, if you shoot lasers, I'll destroy you for copyright issues," Megatron warned the robot. Galleom made a mechanical noise that no one understood.

"What do you think of this force?" Metal said evilly.

"I have to say, I'm impressed!" Sonic said. "But…"

"It doesn't mean we won't beat it!" Dammy finished, holding Zorano between two of her fingers.

"Go, my new force! Destroy whatever part of this Earth you wish!" Five of them disappeared by Metal Sonic enabling them to use one Chaos Control. Dark Gaia stayed.

"Speedy, you go find some place to hide!" Dan said, his voice taking on a different steel. Speedy nodded and ran off. Runo was about to comment on Dan's leader-like tone, but then he said another order. "Amy, I need you to protect Speedy no matter what."

"Understood!" she ran off, following Speedy.

"Tails, you stay with us. There are six villains, so everyone, team up in groups of six. Three Brawlers and three Smashers in one group. Got it?" he asked. Everyone nodded and went their separate directions.

Billy, Shun, and Dammy went with Marth, CF, and Pikachu to face Porky.

Julie, Komba, and Alice went with Kirby, King Dedede, and Meta Knight to face eNeMeE.

Chan, Marucho, and Julio went to face Meta Ridley with Samus, R.O.B. and Yoshi.

Sara, Runo, Klaus, Lucario, Link, and DK went to defeat Galleom.

Dan, Joe, Christopher, Sonic, Tails, and Mario stayed to handle Dark Gaia.

Daisy, Shiori, Masquerade, Mewtwo, Bowser, and Ganondorf decided to attack Megatron.

As the heroes got ready, one question was on their minds.

'Since when did Dan/I start sounding like a professional leader?' Everyone/Dan wondered.

Somewhere in NYC…

Porky was causing a mess! His spider legs were demolishing buildings' windows, and his electrical laser was carving up the roads below. Shun growled as he watched from the air bubble.

"So, how do we stop this guy?" Billy asked Marth.

"He's pretty easy to beat up, but he could be quite evasive here, thanks to all the buildings," Marth explained.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Bakugan, brawl!" Billy yelled, sending out Cycloid. The battle was on!

"Club Smash!" Cycloid yelled, his arms growing huge. His double clubs smashed Porky's glass case, sending him near the Empire State Building.

"Go, Cycloid!" Billy cheered.

"You shall pay for that…" Porky growled. It was then that he heard the last word Shun said.

"….Blade!" The kid turned to see a gust of wind slice off one of the legs.

"You pest!" Porky took to the sky and used a spotlight.

"Don't let it hit ya!" Marth yelled, slashing away at the side. Skyress flew out of the way of an electrical laser.

"How dare you?" Skyress bellowed. "Tornado Destruction Apocalypse!" She sent three tornadoes at Porky, who in turn was blown into the street. He then shot out some homing missiles.

"Dammy! Your go!" CF yelled.

"Right! Ability Card, activate!"

"Spellbinding Blast!" Zorano shot out her symbol that shocked Porky's machine.

CF brought his fist back, ready to hurt.

"Falcon…PUNCH!" CF's flaming fist tore off another leg. It was then that Porky charged something new.

"Try this!" He shot a rainbow laser at them. "Chaos Laser!"

"Crap! Drago was right!" Shun said, throwing Ability Cards like shuriken. "Metal's powered them up!"

"We can't give up on that!" Shun said. "Marth, use your Shield Breaker!" Marth did such and cracked the glass, making some liquid spill out a little. Porky growled as he tried to shock Marth.

"Counter!" he said, slashing it back. Porky was damaged badly.

"Now, Cycloid, body-slam him!" Billy instructed. Cycloid jumped and hit the glass with his belly. Porky's HP was near zero.

Porky fired a bunch more homing missiles at the heroes, but Shun used a Ventus Gale to deflect them.

"Alright, now use your Thunder, Pikachu!" CF told Pikachu.

"'Bout time!" Pikachu said. "Thunder!" Pikachu's body crackled with electricity, and then the streak of lightning struck Porky, severely weakening him.

"Good job!" Dammy cheered.

"You fools can't beat me thins time! Even though there are seven of you attacking me!" Porky jumped onto a building and crawled along, avoiding the others.

"Let's see how you like this, Porky!" said an unknown voice. Our heroes turned to see a hero in a jumpsuit appear. Shun was surprised.

"Does this mean Marvel heroes are real, too?" he and Billy said. It was none other then the hero of New York and other worlds, the web-slinging Spider-Man (the one in Spider Man: Unlimited is the one I'm referring to).

He shot a web out of the launcher on his wrists, and it trapped one of Porky's legs. Using his super-strength, he punched and disintegrated it.

"Need a hand?" he asked the others.

"Eh, what the heck," Shun said. "Where'd ya come from?"

"Madame Web, alternate Earth saving, ya know."

"Okay. Let's go!" The wed-shooter tied a string of webbing around Shun, and he slung him at Porky. Pulling out a few kunai, he yelled, "Have a taste of this, you creep!" They destroyed the rest of the legs, sending Porky to his doom.

As he fell, CF rammed him into the ground with a Falcon Kick, and then sent him to Pikachu via the Blue Falcon Express. Pikachu used Volt Tackle to deliver a nasty shock. Marth slashed him with Critical Hit. Finally, Shun and the Bakugan all attacked him at once. With that, the final blow was struck.

"See ya, Brawlers and Smashers!" Spider-Man said. He jumped through a portal. They watched Porky's machine explode, and Porky was sent flying. He wouldn't be causing trouble for a good while.

Faron Woods, Hyrule, above the Pacific Ocean…

It was currently nighttime in Hyrule, so eNeMeE was even stronger. As Julie shot rocks to clear passages, Kirby could sense his power.

"He's close," Kirby said. Meta Knight cleared a thicket.

"Do you think Young Link's Hyrule might show up soon?"

"Yep. The other Hyrule is a lot different and older than Link's. In that, the Temple of Time is still around, and the Sages there are also different," D.D.D. explained to Alice.

"How so?" Julie asked.

"One's an old man, one's a little girl called a Kokiri, ones a rock-eating creature called a Goron, one's a humanoid fish called a Zora, one's a strange woman called a Sheikah, and the final one's a female thief called a Gerudo," Meta Knight replied.

"Interesting," Komba stated. They finally got to a clearing.

"Look! Up there!" Julie exclaimed. At the top of a tree was their target.

"Wait. We cannot attack him like this," Meta Knight said, confusing the Brawlers. He pulled out a vile of sleeping powder.

"He's a nightmare. We can only get 'em in a dream," King Dedede said. Nodding, the inhaled a small bit and some was blown into eNeMeE's face. The others fell asleep, and eNeMeE was sucked into their dream.

_Dream Battlefield_

The six woke up in a coliseum, along with their Bakugan.

"Hey, does this mean that we're all dreaming the same thing?" Gorem asked, confused. Harpus opened up.

"I think!" she said. "Let's see if we can return to normal!" The four Bakugan did so.

"Nice!" Alice said. They walked to the center to see eNeMeE pop up.

"Let's play, kiddos!" he cackled, unleashing strange, demonic creatures.

"Talk about creepy. Let's see…" Kirby said. "Got it!"

"Slash away?" King Dedede asked, motioning to Meta Knight.

"Nope! Send one into the other! That's how they go down!"

"Got it!" Harpus yelled. "Harpy's Rage!" The wind knocked half of the battalion into the other.

"Hurry and keep him from opening his cape!" Alice yelled. Reaper charged and began to slash away. However, it was Chaos Energy reinforced, so it was a lot tougher to shred. He got halfway through when his dual scythes got dull.

"Crap!" he yelled in frustration.

"Trident of Doom!" Hydranoid yelled. The three energy spheres roasted some of the cape.

"Is that all you have? Well, my cape may be useless, but watch this!" He cast the remainder of the cape, and his gray body started pulsating. They watched as his scrawny arms grew more muscular, his arms lowered slightly, a chest formed out of his rapidly growing neck, and a horrible blob formed at the base. It slightly grew taller as he formed legs out of goopy skin and muscle.

"Eww!" Julie, Harpus, and Alice said in disgust. Bones formed, and soon, he looked like a grey-skinned young man. His helmet donned him blue armor, and the horns went down to make shoulder-spikes. The three jewels disappeared, and then, his helmet turned into a racing helmet for some reason. It was plain blue with a clear visor.

"Ehh heh heh…" he cackled. A giant red jewel came on his chest. The Kirby characters were indeed surprised. "Behold the power of my Warrior Mode!"

"Ability Card, activate! Triple Node!" The four Bakugan were powered up.

"Now, Kirby, try to inhale him!" Julie said. Kirby did so, and became Nightmare Kirby. He spat him out and shot a creature at the wizard. eNeMeE was sent into Meta Knight.

"Mach Tornado!" Meta Knight yelled as he slashed eNeMeE furiously. "Dedede! Use your Waddle Dee Army!" Dedede did so and brewed up a storm. Gordo after Gordo, Waddle Dee after Waddle Dee, and Waddle Doo after Waddle Doo attacked the dark nightmare.

"Grah! This is getting annoying! Die, puffball!" eNeMeE yelled as he lunged for Kirby.

"Cook Kirby time!" He brought out a pot and slammed him in. After a bit of heating, he was blasted into the air.

"Gorem!" Julie said.

"Boomerang Hammer!" Gorem yelled as he swung. It hit him away, and then it hit him forward again. Meta Knight got ready.

"Grr! Why won't my powers work!"

"Dreams can't conquer pure will!" Meta Knight said. "Galaxia Darkness!" Meta Knight trapped him in the darkest black, and then slashed him. It seemed to be over.

"Is he gone?" Alice asked.

"Gone, but not destroyed. You can't destroy a dream. But I have a feeling that he won't bug us for a long time," King Dedede explained. They closed their eyes and woke up in the real world.

**With the six supervillains showed up, how will the others be beaten? Will good prevail against this evil group? Find out next chapter!**


	45. Defeat of Three

**A/N: Time for the next section of the supervillain battles! But first, the always interesting Review Response.**

**Pikana: I'm glad you found the idea interesting. Trust me; I'll do my best to update faster!**

**CloneGirl: You don't need to have a lot of knowledge of Marvel to like it.**

**alxkend: Maybe. Porky might get sent back to Smash World.**

**xXShikigamiXx: You live in Washington? Cool! That means you and alxkend live in the same state! Well, it's not that it was shocking to hear it from you, it's just that no one ever said that they were envious, and to have just anyone say that was surprising! Also, I know it's a little late, but….HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Actually, I don't watch 4Kids. I used to watch it a little (meaning, about only five 30-minute shows total) a few years ago, but I never watched the Kirby series. The only channel I watch is Cartoon Network. As for the youtube thing, I have so slow of internet downloading, it's not even funny. It takes at least 4-7 hours to watch a 5 minute clip of something! No exaggeration! **

**Also, I didn't know about his Japanese name, as Kazo only told me about the guy. He didn't know the name either, until I told him about your review. After all, we both live in the USA. But, you are right. Nightmare does sound better then eNeMeE. I'm just not the kind of guy who watches a bunch of anime, so I don't try to research the original (Japanese) series. **

**Because of that, I'm kinda out of the loop on what the other names of characters are. So, you shouldn't automatically assume that people who watch anime know the Japanese names. They may only know the English dub names. Hardly anyone diligently researches things like that on the internet.**

**super64: Trust me, man, I won't give up on ANY of the stories I type! No matter how many times I may be flamed! (Which was only once so far.)**

**mr. nice: Whoa! You think I'm a legend!?!? That is by far the best comment I have gotten EVER!!!!!!!**

(The song that will be used for Meta Ridley is _Live and Learn___by Crush 40.)

A mysterious, small forest in Chile.

As Chan, Marucho, and Julio waited to find this black dragon, Samus was using her Plasma Whip to clear trees. R.O.B. and Yoshi helped move the fallen trees.

"So, Samus, is this Meta Ridley an evil nemesis or more like a nuisance?" Marucho asked.

"A nuisance. A very tough nuisance. He's bugged me twice on my space travels."

"Speaking of which, where are you from?" Chan asked.

"Well, I apparently came from some other Earth, but I was raised on a planet called the Chozo Region."

"That's cool," Julio remarked. Tentaclear opened up.

"So, what attacks does this dragon have?" he asked.

"Well, he can swoop down and scratch you, and he can breathe fire," Samus explained.

"Ouch! We'd better be ready!" Preyas said, returning to normal form. Fortress looked around from Chan's shoulder.

"I sense the dragon's presence. It's close." A dragon's roar confirmed it. They looked up to see Ridley charging at them!

_Can you feel life movin' through your mind,  
Ooh, looks like it came back for more!  
Yeah yeah yeah!  
Can you feel time slippin' down your spine,  
Ooooooh, You try and try to ignore!  
Yeah!_

"Bakugan, brawl! Fortress/Tentaclear, stand!" Chan/Julio said. The two Bakugan returned to normal and began to attack Meta Ridley. He roared and executed a perfect barrel roll, slipping through their attacks like a hot knife through butter.

"He's so fast!" Chan said. She used some ninja jumps and did a flying kick. BAM! Right in the head! He crashed into the ground at a high-speed, where Samus regained her Power Suit and blasted him with a Charge Beam.__

But you can hardly swallow,  
Your fears and pain.  
When you can't help but follow,  
It puts you right back where you came.

"Bulls-eye!" she shouted. Meta Ridley covered his sore eyes with his metal hands. After a few seconds, he began to shoot fireballs.

"Preyas! Soak 'em!" Marucho said. Preyas shot a stream of water, and it extinguished them. Marucho used his Aquos Powers to condensate the steam, and it formed a water bubble in his hands. He spun in a circle, and then he shot it. Then, he used Freeze Frame to turn it into an icicle spear. It shattered some armor on the dragon's chest.__

Live and learn!  
Hanging on the edge of tomorrow,  
Live and learn!  
From the works of yesterday.  
Live and learn!  
If you beg or if you borrow,  
Live and learn!  
You may never find your way.

Ridley wasn't going to take that sitting down. He charged at Tentaclear.

"Triple Flare Blinder!" Julio yelled. Tentaclear's three eyes shone with a bright, yellow light that stunned Meta Ridley in his tracks. Roaring in frustration, be began to aimlessly claw and kick whatever he could. He unfortunately got a few lucky hits on Fortress. Fortress slashed him with a flaming sword.

"Face of Rage!" Chan said. Luckily, Fortress had that ability left over from his first form. He was surrounded by a red aura, and his angry face slightly frightened the dragon.__

Whooooa, yeah!  
Can you feel life tangle you up inside?  
Yeah, now you're face down on the floor!  
Oh!  


"Have a taste of my increasing rage, Meta Ridley!" he growled. He began to slash away.

"Time to use my Zero Laser!" Samus said. She fired the laser, and it disintegrated the armor on his wings. Meta Ridley was definitely POd now. He shot a fireball.

_  
But you can't save your sorrow,  
You've paid in trade!  
When you can't help but follow,  
It puts you right back where you came._

R.O.B. got in front of the blast and activated his Diffusion Beam. It turned the fireball into cinders.

"Nice job, R.O.B!" Yoshi said.

"It was nothing," he said.__

Live and learn!  
Hanging on the edge of tomorrow,  
Live and learn!  
From the works of yesterday.  
Live and learn!  
If you beg or if you borrow,  
Live and learn!  
You may never find your way.

"Let's go, dragon vs. dragon, Ridley!" Yoshi said. He activated his Super Dragon and took to the skies. An angry Ridley followed him above the clouds. Fire stream collided with fire ball. Dragon attacked dragon. It was surprisingly even on both sides.

"Yoshi! Hang on; we'll get some backup for ya!" Chan said. "Ability Card, activate! Triple Node!" Fortress, Tentaclear, and Preyas were powered up. Tentaclear floated into the sky, and he unleashed a ray of light on him. R.O.B. was thrown into the air by Fortress.

"Robo Beam!" he yelled.

_  
Hey, whoa, whoa,  
Oh yeeeeeeeeeeeah!  
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!  
There's a face searching far, so far and wide.  
There's a place where you dream you'd never find.  
Hold on to what if?  
Hold on to what if?_

Ridley was sent into the ground, head-first. Yoshi lowered R.O.B. to the ground before his wings disappeared. Samus used her Paralyzer to stun him.

"Fortress! Use your Pyro Bomb Blaze!" Preyas said. "I'll use my Giant Whirlpool!" The two Bakugan launched their moves, and the fire was carried by the water. They formed rings around Ridley, who was sustaining heavy damage.

"Water and fire combo attack! Just like Masquerade said he saw on that one Pokemon episode!" Julio said. Ridley was very weak, his armor was gone, and there were many scars on his body.__

Live and learn!  
Hanging on the edge of tomorrow,  
Live and learn!  
From the works of yesterday.  
Live and learn!  
If you beg or if you borrow,  
Live and learn!  
You may never find your way.

Samus smirked. Ridley was pretty much down for the count.

"Time to finish this, Ridley!" She delivered a few spinning kicks, and with that, he was knocked out. Ridley tried everything to get up, but his moves were useless. The others got back. This would be the finisher.__

Live and learn!  
Hanging on the edge of tomorrow,  
Live and learn!  
From the works of yesterday.  
Live and learn!  
If you beg or if you borrow,  
Live and learn!  
You may never find your way.

"Get 'em, Samus!" Marucho cheered. Samus fired one last Charge Beam into his mouth, and the insides of the dragon were fried. It was time for celebration for those six heroes.

(This song will be _Headstrong_ by Trapt)

Somewhere in an ancient, abandoned temple in Uzbekistan.

Runo had her Flashlight Sphere active as they searched for Galleom. He had to be somewhere, as they kept an eye on his movements toward the temple. When they heard a rumbling noise, they knew he was close.

"Why would he want to destroy an ancient temple? It makes no sense!" Sara said. Klaus held Sirenoid in his palm.

"I have to agree," he said. Lucario was scanning for his aura.

"Drat! Galleom is just a self-controlled robot. He doesn't have an aura like the others," he growled. Link randomly slashed the air. DK was tapping walls. Sara heard the rumbling again. Her sensitive ears pinpointed it.

"Guys! He's up there! Fourth floor!" she said, pointing to a ledge. Link looked at her.

"You sure?"

"Yep! Positive! Let's go!" Link pressed the button on one of his Clawshots slowly, releasing the chain slowly. The heroes grabbed it. Link pressed the button on his second, and it shot onto a tangled mess of vines above the ledge. It hit it, and then Link pressed the retract button. They were quickly pulled up to the ledge. DK used his Spinning Kong, and they were at the top. They walked until they were in a room with sunlight pouring through the top.

"Look! There!" DK hollered. There was Galleom, actually trying to destroy the temple. He looked over and stomped towards them. He made a mechanical growl. The battle was on!

_Circling your, circling your, circling your head  
Contemplating everything you ever said  
Now I see the truth I got a doubt  
A different motive in your eyes  
And now I'm out, see you later_

Galleom began the battle with a couple missiles. They found their way over to Link.

"Nice try, ya bucket of bolts! Take this!" Link shot a couple Fire Arrows and roasted them. They exploded in midair, and then Galleom's face met the Giant Punch, courtesy of Donkey Kong.

"Direct hit!" he said. Galleom transformed.__

I see your fantasy  
You want to make it a reality paved in gold  
See inside, inside of our heads, yeah  
Well, now that's over  
I see your motives inside  
Decisions to hide

Tank Galleom tried to ram the heroes, but luckily, their Bakugan helped them jumped out of the way. Link positioned his sword down, and he hit the top of Galleom's armor. He bounced, hit it again, and flipped off.

"Sara, have Solero use Phoenix Sol Flare!" Lucario said, charging an Aura Sphere.

"Solero, you heard the guy!" Sara said, throwing him. Solero unleashed the phoenix-shaped flame and blackened Galleom's armor. Lucario hit a shoulder with his Aura Sphere.__

Back off, I'll take you on  
Headstrong to take on anyone  
I know that you are wrong  
Headstrong, we're headstrong

Galleom was beyond frustrated now. He jumped into the air and landed his feet on the ground, cracking it. He jumped toward them. He was definitely intent on squashing them like bugs. Link charged and used his Great Spin attack to unleash the classic energy wave. It sliced off half of his foot.

"Haos Freeze!" Runo shouted. She no longer needed the Haos Freeze Ability Card, so it was easy. The golden beam shot Galleom, and the robot was stopped in its tracks.__

Back off, I'll take you on  
Headstrong to take on anyone  
I know that you are wrong  
And this is not where you belong  
I can't give everything away  
I won't give everything away

"Let's see you handle my Konga Beat!" DK said, pulling out his drums. The music waves damaged Galleom.

"By my guess, his health bat should be halfway down now," Link said. The ash covering the metal was shaken off, and Galleom was steaming mad. He raised his foot as high as he could with each step, and intended to stomp them into the ground. Unfortunately, he got Link, so he was stuck. "Like that'll stop me!" Link raised his sword and stabbed the metallic foot. He jumped out of the pit and began to Triforce Slash the robot like crazy. __

Conclusions manifest, your first impression's  
Got to be your very best  
I see you're full of… and that's alright  
That's how you play, I guess you get through  
Every night, well, now that's over

The sound of metal on metal echoed throughout the musty ruins. Klaus threw Sirenoid.

"Prepare to be lulled to destruction, Galleom!" Sirenoid said. "Destructive Lullaby!" Sirenoid played her harp, and Galleom was lured over. Once within range, she unleashed sound energy that severely damaged their enemy. The robot's roar of pain could be heard for a mile.__

I see your fantasy  
You want to make it a reality paved in gold  
See inside, inside of our heads, yeah  
Well, now that's over  
I see your motives inside  
Decisions to hide

Galleom made the strangest groan they had heard. His chest plate was glowing seven colors, and they watched his health bar fill back up. Not only that, but some rocks began to attach to Galleom's unarmored parts. He was now Golem Galleom.

_Back off, I'll take you on  
Headstrong to take on anyone  
I know that you are wrong  
Headstrong, we're headstrong_

"Looks like the battle isn't over yet!" Klaus said, searching for an Ability Card. Meanwhile, Runo threw Lars Lion and Tigrerra.

"Ability Card, activate! Tiger Slash!" Tigrerra's golden claws sliced through multiple rocks, revealing the metal-covered wires. It was then that he opened up a compartment on his head.

"That's a Subspace Bomb! Don't let him start the countdown!" Lucario yelled, blasting an Aura Storm at him.__

Back off, I'll take you on  
Headstrong to take on anyone  
I know that you are wrong  
And this is not where you belong

"Triple Node!" Klaus said, powering up the four Bakugan. They charged at Galleom, moves at the ready. Link fired his Clawshots and brought Galleom to the ground. DK used his Head Butt to get Galleom stuck in it. Lucario used Force Palm, and Galleom made a trench. Solero spun around like a Frisbee, and his many wings hit him. Galleom grabbed Solero's forearm and threw him back, but Sirenoid gave him a nasty hit with her tail.__

Where you belong  
(I can't give everything away)  
This is not where you belong  
(I won't give everything away)

"Alright! He's weakening! Let's try and get some more rocks off!" Link said. DK jumped on.

"Spinning Kong!" His fists chiseled away another rock. Sara jumped up and threw a flaming Ability Card. It destroyed another rock.__

I know, I know all about, I know, I know all about  
I know, I know all about, I know, I know all about  
Your motives inside and your decision to hide

Galleom was so frustrated that he began to spin wildly and randomly punch. But, as most people know, you have to keep your cool during battle.

"Let's get 'em!" Tigrerra roared. She scratched and bit wildly at the robot. Galleom was very low on health.__

Back off, I'll take you on  
Headstrong to take on anyone  
I know that you are wrong  
Headstrong, we're headstrong

"Galleom can't do much anymore, so…" Sirenoid began, but was cut off when the final rock broke, and he turned into the tank. A beeping noise occurred.

"Crap! We can't destroy him without setting off the Subspace Bomb! If it explodes, this whole area will be sucked into Subspace!" Lucario said__

Back off, I'll take you on  
Headstrong to take on anyone  
I know that you are wrong  
And this is not where you belong

The battle definitely intensified at that moment. Sara, however, had the idea of ideas. She carefully used her psychokinesis and removed the timer and detonation component from Galleom. It was now just a regular bomb. Link kicked him, and Galleom exploded. The bomb also exploded itself and the timer.__

Where you belong  
This is not where you belong  
(I can't give everything away)  
This is not where you belong  
(I won't give everything away)  
This is not where you belong

A purple flash appeared, and the Subspace energy collapsed on itself, crushing Galleom into nothingness.

"Alright! We did it!" they all cheered.

(The song for Dark Gaia will be _Never Turn Back_ by Crush 40.)

The area around the desert city…

Dan, Joe, Christopher, Sonic, Tails, and Mario stood where the roaring Dark Gaia was shattering buildings. Dan growled.

"How are we gonna stop this thing?"

"We have to pummel it a few times, then hit its three eyes, and then the real party starts!" Sonic said. Christopher sent out Juggernoid and Frosch. Dan sent out Drago and Apollonir. Joe threw Wayvern. Speedy and Amy watched from not too far.

"Do you think that they'll be alright?" Speedy asked.

"Are you kidding? Sonic faced this guy before. There's no way SIX people and Bakugan can lose!" Amy said.

"Let's go, ya creep!" Dan said. Naga laughed with amusement written all over his black face.

"True, but what about the Chaos Energy?" Speedy remarked. Dark Gaia roared, and he swiped at them. It was action time!

_Whoa whoa whoa yeah  
Whoa whoa whoa yeah  
Whoa whoa whoa yeah _

_Whoa yeah _

Dan, who was on Drago's neck, flew out of the way of one of his arms. Speedy and Amy watched the battle through a set of Tails' high tech binoculars.

"Ability Card, activate! Aqua Cyclone!" Christopher said. Frosch managed to weaken Dark Gaia by spraying him with water. Sonic put on the glove and wielded Excalibur.__

Whoa whoa whoa yeah  
Whoa whoa whoa yeah  
Whoa whoa whoa yeah 

Joe and Wayvern got close, but two swipes hit them, knocking them back a bit. Then, Sonic yelled two dreaded words for Dark Gaia.

"Speed Break!" Sonic began to move at twice the speed he normally went! He repeatedly pounded several parts of Dark Gaia's long, serpent-like body. The evil dragon growled in pain.

"Ability Card, activate! Big Bang Blaze!" Joe hollered.__

It's been a long, rough road  
And I'm finally here  
I move an inch forward  
Feels like a year  
Everything I feel seems so unreal  
Is it true?  
Is it true? 

Wayvern shot a flash of light that severely weakened Dark Gaia.

"That's it! Light's his weakness!" Tails reminded. Apollonir began to viciously pound an elbow. His first health bar wasn't too far off from being down, but…__

I take one step forward  
And two steps back  
Got a hundred thousand pounds  
Sitting on my back  
Up, down, all around  
Don't know quite what to do  
To get through 

"I won't let you take my newest minion down so easily!" Naga roared. "Metal!"

"Yes, Master!" The sky lit seven colors, signaling the Super Emeralds energy. The energy surrounded him, and Dark Gaia was healed.

"Crap! With Naga near, it'll be impossible!" Amy yelled. Speedy looked onward worriedly.

"I-a got an idea!" Mario said. He shot a fireball at Naga, who knocked it back. Then, Mario used his Cape to send it to Metal, who wasn't ready. Metal was knocked back. Dark Gaia growled at grabbed Drago.

"Drago!" Dan roared.

"Power of the Cores!" The two beams shot out and knocked Dark Gaia on his back.__

Well I'm on my way  
On my way  
On my way  
On my way 

"Dark Gaia just keeps getting up!" Sonic yelled. "Wait a minute….! I got it! If Dark Gaia has been unleashed, then maybe…." Speedy pointed his ear to hear what was next. Sonic glanced down and didn't see anything else in the core. "CHIIIIIIIIIIP!!!!!" The call echoed throughout the eighth continent.__

Here I am, here I am  
Made it to the end of you  
You Never had a chance while I'm around  
No! No!  
No, no, no, no! 

While Dan looked on curiously, far on another part of Sonic's Earth, a flying, fox-like creature had woken up after being blasted out of the core.

"Where am I? Scratch that. Who am I?" he said, looking around. It was then that he heard the echo of Sonic's yell.

"IIIIP!!!!" He didn't know what it was or who it was calling for, but he felt the need to investigate. He flew over to the action and trembled as he saw Dark Gaia.__

Well, now I'll never turn back, I'll never turn back  
I'll never turn that way  
No matter how life tries to face me  
I'll turn the other way 

Sonic turned to see him.

"W-what is that?!" it said. Sonic moved the bracelet around his left wrist.

"Chip!" he called. The fox turned to see Sonic with the bracelet.

"Who…" Sonic realized Chip lost his memory again.

"I hope this works," he whispered so that only the Brawlers and other Smashers could hear him. "Catch!" Chip's eyes widened as the bracelet was thrown, and it attached around his neck.__

Now and then, now and then  
My head starts to spin, starts to spin  
But I'll never turn back again  
No! No! 

The others watched as the metal part disappeared, and the light blue jewel grew and turned green. The fox's eyes changed in expression, and he shook his head over the energy rush. Suddenly, all of his memories rushed back into his mind.

"Sonic!" he said.

"Nice to have ya back, Chip!" he said. Chip charged at Dark Gaia.

"I don't know how you got out, but I'll take you down again!" Chip said, charging him. He surrounded himself in a shield of light, and he repeatedly punched Dark Gaia. He looked at Drago, and he was a little surprised.

_From this moment on, moment on  
I am moving on, moving on  
And I'll never turn back  
No!  
_

"Drago! Frosch!" Sonic called. "Each of you hold an arm!" he said. Speedy looked at the action.

"What's he doing?" he wondered.

"They need to hold Dark Gaia still so Sonic can attack his three opened eyes," Amy explained.

_  
Whoa whoa whoa yeah  
Whoa whoa whoa yeah  
Whoa whoa whoa yeah  
_

Drago and Frosch did as they were told. Dark Gaia was so weak, he couldn't move. Then, the moving started. Sonic leapt over crumbling obelisks and messed up domes. He made his way to the city and ran up a skyscraper.

'Opened eyes? I don't get it,' Speedy thought.

"Yahoo!" Sonic yelled as he did a corkscrew through the air. He kept flipping as he stopped in front of the left eye. He did a Homing Attack and hit it so hard that Dark Gaia had to shut it.

_  
I guess I'm moving all right and I'm on my way  
Facing every moment day by day  
Take a chance, slip on by, got no time to answer why  
Head straight, head straight  
What will I become if I don't look back  
Give myself a reason for this and that  
I can learn, no U-turns, I will stay right here where I'm at, where I'm at _

Dark Gaia once again roared in pain_._ Then, Sonic landed on another building, and he brought out an Ability Card.

"Ability Card, activate! Path of Rings!" A long string of rings appeared, and it headed straight for dark Gaia's right eye. "Ancient Light!" Sonic said as his shoes made him travel along them. Dark Gaia's right eye was now forced shut. They could tell that the evil being was frustrated. So were Naga and Metal Sonic. Dark Gaia raised his tail from the core of the Earth, and he swatted at the city. The force of his swipe knocked down buildings as Sonic went through them and over them. He dodged some energy beams, and he was in the air, heading for the middle eye.

_But I'm on my way  
On my way  
On my way  
On my way  
_

Naga watched as one of his strongest minions was damaged in the third eye, really weakening him.

"No!" he growled.

"Okay, Mario! Use your Mario Finale!" Sonic said. Mario blasted Dark Gaia in the stomach. Then, Sonic smirked as Dark Gaia entered his final phase. Speedy watched.

_  
Here I am  
Made it to the end of you  
You never had a chance while I'm around  
No! No! _

_No, no, no, no! _

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Sonic told me about this. Hope you didn't eat too much for lunch," Amy said. Dark Gaia shot out a purple beam that covered the area in darkness. It was then that his blue hair flared up. They watched the two stone heads open to reveal a tangle of small tentacles.__

Well now I'll never turn back, I'll never turn back  
I never turn that way  
No matter how life tries to face me  
I'll turn the other way 

They all watched as the tentacles retreated to reveal green, snake-like eyes. Four were on each shoulder. Then, he reared his head back. A couple legs were pushed out of his body, and green ooze squirted out as they appeared. A mess of bigger tentacles were shown under his head, and they moves to reveal an eye that was at least two feet bigger than the others. Everyone watched in disgust. Sonic used the power of the Super Emeralds, and Tails activated the Cyclone.__

Now and then, now and then  
My head starts to spin, starts to spin  
But I'll never turn back again  
No! No! 

"A 12 eyed creature?!" Dan hollered as the two attacked. "That's the weirdest thing I've ever seen!" Tails began to bombard Dark Gaia with bullets and lasers, and he hit three eyes within a minute. Hyper Sonic rammed one eye after another.

"Master! They'll defeat him at this rate!" Metal said, concerned. Soon, all of the eyes were rammed shut.

_  
From this moment on, moment on  
I am moving on, moving on  
And I'll never turn back  
No! _

"Grahh! Retreat! They are too strong! Guess I'll have to think of a much stronger villain…." Naga growled. Once again, Naga had failed. Or… had he yet? Dark Gaia roared, and suddenly, he flew into the sky…with wings! "Metal Sonic? Did you…" Metal made a mechanical chuckle. Dark Gaia shot a flaming rock, but Chip crashed through. He rammed the center eye one last time, and the serpent fell to his doom.__

Whoa whoa whoa yeah  
Whoa whoa whoa yeah  
Whoa whoa whoa yeah 

"Now, we should retreat," Metal said. The two evil doers flew off. The crack sealed up, but then, Chip was blasted with what appeared to be Vestroian energy. They didn't know what to make of it.__

I'll, I'll, I'll never turn back!

They continued to ponder, but for some reason, Chip wasn't disappearing like last time.

**Well, that's three fights down. How do you think the battle against Megatron went while the other five were fought? Find out in the next chapter!**


	46. A Classic Battle

**A/N: Hello readers! Finally, the chapter with the evil robot, Megatron! But first, you guys know the drill! Review Response time!**

**Pikana: An A+… how thoughtful! You call this 'great art'? Dude! And this is only my second story!**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Well, I guess I could try to research some stuff whenever I have an idea. But I think I'll have to stick to other sites besides that Kumby and YouTube. Like I said, it takes HOURS to download a mere five minutes of a show. And those are some nice combo moves! Thanks for the ideas! Let me know if you come up with more! **

**As for the friend thing, don't worry. Kazo won't be able to say anything after June 2, as he has no internet. He can only do that stuff at school. I'll talk to alxkend and tell him to not bother to PM you. I mean, this is between you and me. Just be warned, I may end up just ad-libbing and forget to research, as I have never done that before.**

**alxkend: Indeed it is heating up, my friend. But also sadly, it is nearing the end. Just a few worlds, another plot twist, the rest of the worlds, and the final battle.**

**xXShikigamiXx: Well, I haven't gotten anymore votes, so I'd say yes, the poll is over. And you're welcome.**

**Notice: There won't be any background music in this chapter, as I am determined to drag this out for a whole chapter, if possible. So, you can choose your own song(s). **

**Oh, almost forgot. I might be updating faster, since I won't be typing three stories at a time until September. Of course, I do believe I will finish this over summer vacation.**

**Okay, people! Now that you know the poll for Digital Dismay is over, here are the results. All Five Seasons has won against Season 1 in a nearly unanimous 4-1!**

**Now, on to this exciting chapter!**

San Francisco

The other six were trying to find Megatron, and it didn't take long at all. He was wrecking everything! They watched as a car with four people was knocked into the air.

"That…monster!" Shiori gasped.

"Shadow Warp!" Masquerade said. A portal opened up, and with one motion, everyone else in the city was turned into black squares and entered the portal, just like Link and Midna's warping ability. That way, every civilian was safe. Megatron turned.

"Do you humans really think you can stop me?" he growled.

"Well…duh!" Daisy said.

"You insects! I'll crush you!" Megatron pounded the ground and made a shockwave. Military jets came in, but Masquerade quickly warped into each and got them to go back. "You think you can prevent any casualties? I will show you!" Megatron turned into a plane and flew after them. Missiles were launched at them.

"Go, go, go!" they yelled, flooring the pedals. Masquerade then said two words that stopped Megatron.

"Shadow Slash!" A blade zoomed out of the shadow at him, forcing him to stop. The jets got away and ordered the rest of the military to stand down. Megatron made a growl, transformed, and charged at the heroes, knocking cars and debris out of the way.

"Bakugan, brawl!" the three yelled. Oberus, Clayf, and Exedra popped out. Megatron wasn't much taller than them at all. Megatron took a swipe at them and knocked them back.

"Those are some sharp claws!" Exedra commented. Clayf charged.

"Atomic Brave!" Clayf powered up and charged Megatron, knocking him back. Masquerade started running up a flight of stairs in a nearby building so he could get to the top. He didn't completely trust his Shadow Warp ability. As he ran up, Megatron's evil eye caught him. The Darkus Guardian ducked in time to avoid a metal hand that crashed through a giant window. Shattered glass poked his sweatshirt. He pulled them out as he ran.

"You are SO lucky that this wasn't my jacket or I'd slice that hand off!" he yelled at Megatron, throwing a Shadow Sword into the hand. He got to the top, jumped off the building, formed another Shadow Sword, and stabbed the Decepticon in the eye. Megatron roared and shook him off. His arms spread, Masquerade basically went into free fall. "Yahoo!" Masquerade was actually enjoying the wind rush against his body. Oberus flew, and the blonde landed on her back.

"You okay?" she asked.

"Nice catch!" he responded. The two got on the ground.

"Turmoil!" Shiori shouted, powering up Oberus. Masquerade pulled out his other two Bakugan.

"Demon Wizard!" Masquerade shouted. A black aura surrounded the two spheres in his hand and went into the mouth on Exedra's stomach. He was also powered up. Then, Mewtwo rushed in.

"You've had your fun, now let us give it a try!" Mewtwo said. He hit one of Megatron's kneecaps, but was kicked back a few feet. "Teleport!" Mewtwo warped not too far, but at least he was on the ground. Ganondorf turned into Beast Ganon and roared. Megatron blinked, but he wasn't paralyzed. Ganon charged, but with one punch, was knocked back.

"Dude!" he said after getting up. "This guy's tough!"

"Let the REAL king show you how it's done!" Bowser said, going Giga Bowser. The giant Koopa lunged at Megatron, but the evil robot did something he did not expect. Megatron grabbed his horns, jumped into the air, made Bowser's back face the ground, and then let gravity and rockets do the rest. However, even being slammed into the ground wouldn't stop that guy. Immediately after landing, Bowser shot a Fire Breath and punched him up.

"How can this be?" he yelled.

"I use that grab move a lot buddy. Using my own moves won't do much! But, not bad." They reverted.

"Shadow Storm!" Mewtwo yelled. Mewtwo hit him in the chest plate, weakening Megatron slightly.

"That won't stop me!" he cackled. Megatron turned into the plane and tried to ram them. The Brawlers jumped out of the way, but the force of the wind knocked Masquerade into a trash can. That didn't stop the kid, however. Masquerade used another Shadow Slash. However, Megatron shot a barrage of bullets and took it down.

"That guy just had to copy a military jet, didn't he?" Daisy said, obviously annoyed at the villain's persistence. Then, some other plane came along at shot at Megatron.

"Get outta here, you idiot!" Clayf shouted, attempting to steer him off.

"Outta my way! I won't let you have all the fun!" the cocky fighter said. He kept shooting bullets, but Megatron pulled out a large gun and shot a laser. The explosion that occurred made Shiori gasp. The pilot was nowhere. The roar of anger from Masquerade sounded like Exedra, greatly surprising his Guardian Bakugan. The symbol shone a bit more brightly.

"DARKUS!" Masquerade's body erupted in a black aura. His Bakupod registered Exedra's Gs increasing by 300 like normal, however…something else happened. Once that stopped… it increased again! Exedra watched as his power level went to 1000.

'So, when the Guardians are angry, their moves are stronger, and they can power up Bakugan a bit more,' Clayf thought. Megatron produced a sword from one of the wings and sliced a building's foundation. Shiori turned to see it begin to collapse!

"I see Megatron decided to do exactly what Naga said he could do!" she yelled as she had Oberus blow it back. They ran off just before it re-collapsed. Megatron ran after them, tearing up more of the road.

"That guy doesn't fool around, does he?!" Daisy yelled. Clayf threw a rock, but it was slashed.

"I agree! He's tough!" the golem-like Bakugan replied. Suddenly, Masquerade sensed something was wrong. He turned to see Maegatron grappling Exedra's nine heads!

"I'll crush you with my bare hands!" he roared. With one swift motion, Megatron pounded Exedra into the ground.

"EXEDRA!!!!" the boy yelled. The others turned. Bowser roared, went Giga again, and shot fire on the hand still around Exedra's necks.

"I'll get it! Shadow Storm!" Mewtwo yelled. That blast released Megatron's grip. "You okay, Exedra?" Exedra got up and nodded. Masquerade was beyond all control. He ran up, Shadow Warped, hit him with a Shadow Sword, used a Shadow Slash, and Shadow Warped again.

"No one hurts my friends and gets away with it!" In a not so far-off part of the city, a blue truck with flames painted was parked on the street.

"That boy is good. I can't blow my cover yet, though. Just gotta wait a bit, then attack."

"Ganondorf, try to paralyze him again!" Bowser said. Ganondorf transformed and roared, and this time, it worked. Megatron was paralyzed. Ganon rammed him and slammed the robot into the ground. He jumped off.

"I'm glad Megatron didn't do what he did to Jazz to you," Masquerade said to his Bakugan, who was now in his sphere form. He was too weak to battle.

"Why? What did Megatron do to Jazz in the movie?"

"Ripped him in half…" Daisy grimaced. Exedra shuddered. Oberus was blown back and turned into her sphere form. Shiori took refuge under a building.

"It's all on you three for a while!" Shiori called to the Smashers. They nodded.

"Meet my Warlock Punch, you freak!" He managed to punch through the metal, since his fist produced super-hot flames. "Now, time to try…this puppy!" Ganondorf pulled out the Light Sage's sword.

"He never used that except for a taunt," Daisy said. "He told me."

"This sword must have some light energy left. Here goes nothing…" he said. He ran at Megatron, sword ready, and slashed away at one of the arms. Mewtwo charged.

"How about a dose of Confusion?" He blasted purple energy that covered Megatron in purple flames.

"Ha! Take that! Now, take this!" Bowser said, whirling in the air. His spikes scratched his face. Bowser then smashed Megatron into the ground with a Bowser Bomb.

"Do you fools think you can stop me? I will destroy every life form on this pathetic planet!" Megatron roared. It was then that a portal opened up. Shadow Bakugan emerged by the dozens! Thankfully, the three ancient soldiers were healed.

"Let's try this again! Bakugan, brawl!" they yelled. Mewtwo teamed up with Clayf, Ganondorf with Exedra, and Bowser with Oberus.

"You won't win. Go, my minions! Destroy them!" The fleet of black Bakugan charged. Oberus and Bowser ran into a Shadow Oberus.

"Take this! Turmoil!" the bird-like Bakugan yelled. She glowed green and shot a huge gust of wind. Bowser breathed his Fire Breath to roast it into nothing. Clayf smashed a few with his oversized fists, and Mewtwo destroyed them with a mega amount of Shadow Balls and Disables. Megatron shot Mewtwo, sending him flying. Luckily, Shiori caught him.

"Take this!" Ganondorf yelled, kicking two of them towards another street.

"Can't blow cover…can't blow cover…" said the voice near the truck. Suddenly, the two Shadow Bakugan bumped into it and ended up scratching the paint. The Brawlers and Smashers followed. Megatron laughed, thinking they were retreating.

'Why is there a truck here?' Shiori wondered.

"Hey! You scratched the paint!" a voice yelled. "Now you're going to pay!" The six watched in awe as the truck began…. to transform before their eyes! Metal and glass clanked, and in about a minute, a tall robot loomed over them. One stomp and the two were squashed.

"Hey! It's Optimus Prime!" Daisy said.

(I'm pretty sure you _did_ see that coming.)

"Indeed I am," Optimus replied, getting down to near their level.

"How did you get here to Earth?" Mewtwo asked. Optimus stood up.

"I followed Megatron here after I zoned in on his communication with something called Naga."

"Evil Bakugan. He's a black dragon," Masquerade explained.

"I see. I came here because I can't let Megatron destroy or enslave this planet. Freedom is the right of all sentient beings," he said, looking over the deserted city.

"I agree with ya there," Shiori asked.

"We can't let Megatron escape this city. He'll hunt down any living thing on this planet. Brawlers! Smashers! Roll out!"

"Aye aye!" they responded. Masquerade pressed a button, and his car rolled in at near light-speed. His eyes widened when he saw it. The windshield was sprayed with red paint, and it was covered it mud that was obviously thrown from a bucket. Optimus blinked, but got a glare from the boy.

"Don't ask. Let's go." Optimus nodded and transformed back into the truck. Shiori was in the driver's seat. Daisy yelled,

"I call shotgun!" Ganondorf and Bowser got in the back. Mewtwo got in the passenger seat. They drove off, and they found Megatron on none other than the Golden Gate Bridge! Megatron turned to see them. The four got out of the truck.

"I see you didn't retreat after all. Well, what do you say…to this?!" Megatron shot a support beam in the middle, and a few cars fell into the water. However, Masquerade warped them as well.

"Beat it, Megatron! You aren't welcome here!" Optimus said as he transformed.

"Optimus Prime. I though you would end up following me. But, can you handle the Shadow Bakugan as well?" His army charged.

"Optimus! We'll get them. You take care of Megatron!" Clayf said.

"Got it, Clayf." Optimus ran and punched Megatron. The two engaged in a classical battle of good versus evil. Oberus blew, Exedra blasted, and Clayf punched the Shadow Bakugan into oblivion. They turned to see Optimus get blasted with a few missiles. However, he got back up and shot Megatron. The two ran and their fists connected with each other, creating a violent shockwave that rattled the bridge.

"How can those two just keep going?" Daisy asked, now on Clayf's shoulder.

"Don't know, but let's help! Everyone. Ready?" Exedra asked the three Brawlers.

"Ready! Ability Card, activate! Triple Node!" everyone yelled. The three were powered up to the extreme and charged. They got beside Optimus. The four giants were ready to rock and roll! Optimus shot a laser, followed by a few missiles. Oberus shot a gust of wind. Clayf shot rocks like a madman. Exedra blasted shadows.

"Triad Laser!" they yelled. The blast knocked Megatron back and knocked the Golden Gate Bridge off of its supports. They fell into the water, both robots sorta weak.

"It's just you and me, Megatron. At the end of this day, one shall stand; one shall fall."

"And it's you who shall fall, Autobot!" Megatron yelled, delivering a spinning kick to Optimus. Then, Megatron pinned him. Optimus turned to give a nasty punch to his face, and then knocked him off. Megatron transformed into the plane, and he began to shoot at Optimus. Optimus was good at dodging, though. He moved out of the way and fired.

"Let's finish this!" they all yelled.

"Shadow Slash!" Masquerade hollered, stabbing Megatron in the back with a sword from the robot's own shadow. Megatron roared, and Optimus sent him flying through a portal he created with the Matrix. The battle of a lifetime… was over. Optimus left to continue the war of Cybertron. But not without some parting encouragement.

Back at the desert outskirts

All of the heroes returned to the location of where they were to see that Naga and Metal Sonic were gone. They cheered each other for a job well done. Runo then asked Dan what she had in her mind before.

"Dan, how did you get that tone?" Runo said.

"Not sure myself, but it was cool! Oh, guys, say hello to Chip, aka Light Gaia," Dan replied. Marucho brought out his laptop. "For some reason, he got hit with something, and he hasn't disappeared like Sonic said." Marucho pressed the scan button, and Tails recorded the data.

"Wow! Apparently, Chip was hit with Vestroian energy and power from the cores, breaking his bond with Dark Gaia! Which means, Chip here won't be disappearing!" Tails said. Sonic high-fived him.

"Welcome to the team, little buddy. Let me introduce my new friends to ya!" So, Sonic introduced all of the Smashers, Brawlers, and others. Chip was pleased to meet them all. Runo then realized something.

"Guys, were there any casualties or fatalities?" Runo asked. The other shook their heads, making her sigh in relief. Naga, however, was now busy trying to contact someone. Finally, he got a response.

"_Who dares contact me?_" the voice growled.

"I am Naga. I can sense your evil desires. Hear me, and come forth!"

"_What is in it for me if I serve you?_" it asked.

"You may destroy an entire planet, if you wish," he cackled.

"_Well then, do tell me more…_" And so, Naga began to contact this evil being, forming a new plan.

**Dun, dun, dun…. Who is this new villain Naga has contacted? When will he appear? Find out later on! Oh, if any of you don't like the fact that the Smashers and Brawlers got their butts handed to them for a bit, that was kinda necessary. I couldn't make Megatron seem weak!**

**I bet you might be wondering why I got this up so quickly. Well, a friend of mine won't be able to read this story over the summer, and he wants to read it before school's out at the end of today. He said he'd go insane if I didn't get this chapter in.**


	47. Three Worlds

**A/N: Okay, readers! It's time for Review Response!**

**Natureking129 (guest): Thanks you for your next set of reviews! Multi Reviews don't really help with people who want a huge review average, but I can understand that some people don't feel like doing that. Well, I hope you leave comments for Chapters 17-44! I would really appreciate it!**

**alxkend: Yep, Megatron is gone! From Earth, anyway.**

**xXShikigamiXx: Well, thank you! I'll consult you if people who read want the Japanese terms in Digital Dismay.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Those are some cool ideas, man! And don't worry, the evil villain will be revealed shortly. Also, for the timeline, I honestly don't know. The last episode I can recall seeing was the one where that guy with the Millennium Key entered Yugi's mind, but I missed a lot of episodes in between. After that, Mom wouldn't let us watch it, seeing as it had too many 'demonic' elements. So, let's just say it'll be shortly after Yugi beats Pegasus. **

**Pikana: Nope, it isn't Shadow Queen. In fact, it isn't on a videogame. But, nice try. Also, the poll is very easy to understand. I ask a question and give you the choices. Then, in your review for whatever chapter you want to post it on, you type in your choice. Okay?**

**Also, I will be introducing more cards of my own design, and a complete disclaimer will be shown at the end of this story.**

**Enjoy!**

After the villain cut off the telepathic connection with Naga, he sat in the barren wasteland that he destroyed previously.

"Hm…this Master Emerald seems powerful. Only I should be that powerful. Well then, if I'm going to ensure my superiority, I'd better destroy it and that planet called Earth. Some fools might try to stop me," he said. "Just gotta let Naga open the portal…" He then snickered evilly as he walked off.

Back in Vestroia, a frustrated Naga started banging his head against the first force field.

"Master?" Metal asked, curious.

"Why won't this thing break?! Just hurry up with the process! Grah!" he yelled, not even noticing Metal Sonic. Suddenly, on his fourth ram, an energy wave occurred!

"Huh?!"

"Heh heh heh… I'm a genius!" he said. This could only mean one thing. More worlds would be fusing!

In Marucho's skyscraper, where the others were celebrating their victory and getting a new member, an alarm went off. The birdbot flew to Tails.

"Eggman, what is it?" he asked. "Is it another portal?"

"No, not one, three!" Eggman said in a panic.

"Dude! Calm down! All we have to do is either just use our powers on the center, or follow hidden clues!" Dan said, confident as ever.

"Better hurry. The portal above Ever Peak has branched out," Eggman said. They all left and got to Ever Peak. Once in the portal, they flew into the first tunnel they saw. After about five minutes, they came to a strange planet.

"Hey, it's Dream Land!" Kirby said. They got off their Bakugan and noticed similar problems like on Earth five years ago. Floods were occurring in the desert areas, and snow was falling in tropical areas.

"So, what's the worst case scenario?" Meta Knight said.

"We stopped it before then, but the biggest thing that happened was….that!!" Runo said. They looked up to see that the sky was purple, and there was a green ring!

"The worst case scenario that would happen is that the weather systems would create tsunamis and earthquakes, and the planet would turn in on itself, crushing the planet into nothing," Eggman informed.

"So, what do we do here?" Dan asked.

"Let's find anything that may be related to energy," King Dedede said. Then, a Walky ran up to Kirby and started squeaking.

"Uh huh, oh, okay," Kirby said. The Walky ran off. "It said that maybe if we fire a Warp Star and a shot from a Super Scope at the sun from the highest place in Dream Land, it should stop all this."

"Really? But how are we gonna get a Super Scope?" Sonic asked. Meta Knight held a card. So did Dan.

"Item Card, activate! Super Scope!" Meta Knight said.

"Item Card, activate! Warp Star!" Dan said. The items materialized.

"Now, let's mind the highest place around." They pointed to a tall factor, and they climbed up. Dan slipped once or twice, due to his slight clumsiness, but he only slid a few inches on the way up.

"Sorry, but the Super Scope wouldn't be able to blast the door open to the elevator," Kirby puffed.

"It's fine," they said. Sonic, Tails, Amy, and Speedy were already at the top, thanks to their speed.

"C'mon, ya slowpokes!" Sonic yelled. Mewtwo, who was on the ground, smirked and used Teleport. He was up there with them. Shahra was surprised at all their abilities, to say the least. Chip finally managed to get up there as well. Within minutes, the rest made it.

"Okay, so we're here at the top. Now what?" Shun asked.

"Uh, look again," Meta Knight said. They saw a portal and groaned. Walking inside, they saw a door to what else? A stairway.

"It has…a Pyrus symbol…" Dan said, confused.

"Whoever made this knew this would happen."

"Guys, we'd better hurry! I just heard there's a tidal wave on the other side of this planet!" Sonic said.

"Let me!" Marucho said. He shot water at it, and the symbol disappeared.

"Good thinkin', Marucho!" Alice complimented as they ran up. They had to repeat the process. Run, shot an element at the door that was the opposite of the symbol on it, and run again.

"This is taking forever!" Christopher said, his legs getting tired. Dan picked him up and placed him on Drago.

"There ya go, buddy," Dan said. Finally, they made it to the top.

"I wonder why Mute City was so easy," Julie said, sitting on the ground.

"I don't have anything that can reflect stuff to the sky."

"Hey, speaking of reflecting stuff, Link, where'd you get that Mirror Shield, and why haven't you used your Ordon Shield?" Masquerade asked.

"Oh, well, you know how Young Link has traveled through time and stuff?"

"Yeah," they responded, getting to the top of the platform.

"Well, he told everyone in his Hyrule about it, which surprised them, but they believed him. So, after that, Saria, his Kokiri friend, got him the Mirror Shield from the Spirit Temple," Link explained

"Really? So, those six people who become the Sages in Young Link's Hyrule know that they will become the Sages?"

"Yep, and the Ganondorf in that Hyrule was erased from time. The one we know is different. They claim that he's the guy who saved Hyrule before, but in all truth, the Hero of Time in my world is not him."

"Kinda confusing. So, I take it that Young Link is letting you hold on to that until he's older?" Samus asked.

"Yep!"

"When did you get it?" Lars Lion asked him

"Right before we came to Earth," he replied. "I wanted Toon Link's, but then I realized that his was too small."

"Was that one better?"

"I thought at first, but when Young Link told me that his could absorb fire and ice attacks, I immediately changed my mind and took it! Also, the Ordon Shield and Ordon Sword are kinda pathetic."

"Cool. Well, we're here!" Kirby said. They were at the top, facing the sun. Kirby threw the Warp Star, and Meta Knight shot the Super Scope full blast. It hit the aura, and the planet stabilized. A portal opened up, and they flew back. It closed, and more energy came out. They flew into the next one. Naga roared.

"They find out these things too quickly! Metal, stop them!"

"Yes, Master!" he flew out of Vestroia and chased them. The Brawlers entered, and Sonic sent a Sonic Wind at Metal before he could get in.

"That was easy," he said. They saw that it was only snowing there, but cheery voices rang in the air.

"Hey! It's my island!" Yoshi cheered. He ran to the noise, and they found a bunch of Yoshi. There were all sorts of colors! Red, yellow, green, blue, light blue, gray, pink, purple, black, white dominated the field. They all motioned for Yoshi, but he pointed to the sky. All of them stopped to look, but shrugged.

"Bading, bring, hrr…" Yoshi said in his native language. The others shook slightly, but then started thinking. They then had light bulbs above their heads, and they sang a different song. "Why are they in position to start singing the 'Unite!' song?" Yoshi asked. "Ah, well, guess I'll join." He walked over and they began the song. Everyone sat to listen to the cheerful tune.

(If you've ever played _Yoshi's Story_, it's the song that plays before you open the book.)

Suddenly, Yoshi noticed that six symbols on the ground were glowing!

'What the…?' Then, almost remarkably, they shot into the sky and fused with the aura. The snow melted, and the planet began to shake.

"I don't know what's going on, but let's move, Yoshi!" Dan hollered. Yoshi ran off with them, and they headed for the third world.

"This is so easy! There haven't been any collapses at all! Just like five years ago," Dan said, relaxing on Drago's large neck.

"Keep focus, Daniel! We have no idea what world is next!" Drago reminded him. They headed through the third portal, and Marth immediately recognized it.

"Hey! This is Roy's, Ike's, and my world!" he said.

"Really? So, how do we stop this one?"

"Let's look around. If the Links' worlds were connected to Vestroia, this might be connected to something," Tigrerra said, landing on all four paws. As they walked, Marth called Ike and Roy on his Bakupod.

"Ike, Roy, this is Marth. Listen, think you could use Master Hand's computer to see if there's anything that can help us?"

"Yeah, hold on," Roy said. He got Ike and they searched. As the others walked, they were confronted by some humanoid-dog who howled.

"Okay guys, got something!" Ike said. "Turns out that…huh?!" He looked and saw the dog.

"Guys, stand still…" he said quietly. The heroes did such, but it didn't work. The wolf lunged at them, but Masquerade stuck out his hand and warped it into the ocean.

"That takes care of him. Now, what were you saying?" the blonde asked.

"Oh, right. Lycia, Crimea, and Altea actually do have something in common."

"Really? What?"

"Around the 1st Century A.D., these three areas were in war with Hyrule," Roy said, surprising Link and Midna.

"No flippin' way!" Midna hollered. "I would've known about that!"

"Well, this was LONG ago. Anyway, the Hylains managed to find a way to calm them easily. They drew lines directly along the eastern boundaries of the country, until the three lines met. They had the goddesses use their power, and a golden light spread over the world, calming the soldiers. A treaty was signed, and the clans went back to their separate worlds. So, we just have to send Zelda over, and she can help you get rid of that aura! But, be careful."

"Awesome! Well, we'll be waiting!" they said. They began to search for the line, but were ambushed by a group of soldiers.

"What brings you here to Altea!? Are you responsible for this catastrophe?!"

"No, we're here to fix it, Commander Ulrich," Marth said, popping out of the crowd.

"Prince Marth! Please, forgive us. Well then, continue on your way," he said, making the soldiers stand aside. In a flash, Zelda appeared.

"Hey, Zelda!" Marth greeted.

"Oh, hey, Marth. So, have you found the line, or was it washed away?" she asked.

"Nope, we aren't at the eastern coast yet. Don't worry, we're close," Link said, scanning. Eventually, they found the line and followed it. When they reached the ocean, Marucho used Freeze Frame to create an ice path along the line. After about hours of walking, they found the intersection. Link, Ganondorf, and Zelda activated the Triforce pieces on their hands, and the golden ray fused with the aura and began to reshape the world into a continent. It was then surrounded by a sphere like Mario's world. They then left, and the two villains were beyond frustrated.

"Why why why!?!" Naga roared. "Those brats just get quicker and quicker! Grah!!!!!" Naga yelled.

"At least are plans aren't foiled yet. Just think. They'll have to beat us to restore the cores and fix Vestroia, but what about their over-reactivity? Do you think that they could stop that?" Metal said.

"Yes. You're right. Being us is near impossible, but them fixing the cores? Ha! That IS impossible!" Naga said, feeling much better.

"So, just three more days?"

"Yep, and then my new minion will arrive!" he laughed. "Maybe he can destroy those Brawlers." The Brawlers were now back on Earth. Using a universal map that he and Eggman made, Tails showed the progress they all had made. They watched to see that Kirby's world, Marth's world, and Mario's World had reshaped into three large landmasses that were surrounded by water. The lakes stayed where they were, of course.

"Well, let's mark of some worlds!" Dan said. "Now, let's see. Sonic's Earth, Link's World, Toon Link's World, one of Young Link's worlds, Mario's world, Marth's world, Kirby's world, Yoshi's island, CF's hometown, and DK's jungle. That it?"

"Yep," the Smashers replied.

"You know, I have a feeling that these next days will be awesome!" Preyas said, rolling around.

"I hope so, but why do I have a feeling that something bad's gonna happen in a few days?" Dan said, looking out the window worriedly.

"Hey, stop worrying!" Joe reassured, organizing some Bakugan Cards. However, when he pulled out his Field Card, he blinked. The design on the back was a green ring instead of six circles! "Hey! That energy wave changed our cards!" Dan pulled his out.

"Wow! You're right! But, it doesn't really matter. We'll probably not use them," Dan stated. "So, what cards are you organizing?"

"Just a bunch of them. I'm not going through every single one," Joe explained.

"Oh. Well, I wonder if Naga's next move will be wiser next time," Runo said, sitting by Dan.

**Okay, that was short. Well, next time, the heroes face the evil villain! Then you'll find out who he is! Oh, I have gone back and edited a few things.**

**1. Clayf's Club Smash effect and DK's attacks are now in the list in Ch. 40. (I can't believe I forgot those two!)**

**2. The effects of Dark Super Sonic, Dark Hyper Sonic, Sonic the Werehog, Wolf Link, Cook Kirby, and Giant Punch have been changed. Feel free to check them out if ya want.**

**3. I might make a complete list of all the OC Cards still used later on, but first, feel free to mention any item in Super Smash Bros. you want to see as an Item Card, and tell me about ideas for future Ability Cards and Gate Cards!**

**4. Just a quick note. Here is the Gate Card and the Ability Cards introduced in the story that will not be in the list, as they are not used anymore: Area 12, Jump, Dark Reveal, Power Corruption Reversal, Wrath of Vishnu, Super Flare Blinder.**

**5. Finally, I'd appreciate it if you could help me by going back and rereading some chapters to help me find all of the OC Cards.**


	48. A Tough Enemy

**A/N: Okay, people! Time to reveal the evil villain! Get ready for an epic, four chapter battle of immense power! That's right! One fight shall last four chapters! Now it's time for Review Response!**

**GammaTron: I haven't forgotten about Olimar, if that's what you are specifically referring to. He will play a role in the Smash World Arc. That will be after this set of chapters.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Um… wow. You definitely have watched a lot of Yu-Gi-Oh! Well, I guess it wouldn't hurt to let Yugi appear without one. So, I'll have Marucho, Michael, and Tails make his Bakugan Launcher have a Duel Disk Mode. I'll call it the Duel Launcher.** **I guess I could try to bring in Dark Magician Girl early; I mean you are letting me use time-alteration for that story. But, I'll need you to fill me in on all of the things that happen after the thing with Pegasus. I'm not gonna waste a whole three days to watch one episode I missed. It would take me the whole summer or more to see every episode I missed in Yu-Gi-Oh!** **As for the metamorphosis, when Yugi slides them through his Duel Launcher, Vestroian energy changes the Monster Cards into Bakugan Spheres, and the Spell, Trap, and Field Spell Cards become Ability or Gate Cards. So, really, they do through a metamorphosis, just not in the same way.** **Oh, Kazo gave me this idea. How about a vice versa so the Smashers and Bakugan can turn into cards to try Duel Monsters?**

**alxkend: You got that right, buddy! It is gonna be one heck of an epic battle!**

**xXShikigamiXx: You can believe me when I say that these next chapters will have more action and fighting than the rest combined!**

**Oh, I have a message that may disappoint you all. I'm going to get rid of all the OC cards I've used but Area 12, which isn't many, and introduce them later in the story. Now I just need to find them around the story. The reason for this is because I haven't done a lot of Bakugan brawls, and I have a feeling that they will be more useful later on. Not to mention, the cards are too spread out. So please help me find them in the earlier chapters!**

**Enjoy, readers!**

In the three days it took Naga to open the portal, the Brawlers spent their time hanging around, formulating a strategy to take down Naga and Metal.

"I really don't see why we can't just go through the portal above Ever Peak and enter Vestroia and take 'em down!" Dan groaned, burying his face in the pillow on his lap. No one was agreeing with him.

"What if Naga has a trap? We could be in trouble," Alice said worriedly.

"Guys, unless Naga can bring in a super-powerful villain…" Dan began.

"Like Nazo from _Sonic: __Nazo Unleashed_?" Sonic said, watching the fan-made video. "That guy made him tough, but he gave me a Super Sonic Wind attack! Too bad I really don't have that attack."

"Saw those," Dan said, referring to the video.

"But you have to admit that Nazo, if he is real like everything else that's happened, but doesn't come from the Chaos Emeralds, then we'd be in trouble," Masquerade said.

"Definitely," they all said. All of them had seen the videos, courtesy of said blonde.

"So, anyway, unless Nazo's real and Naga brings him in, I don't think we're in any danger!" Dan finished. Everyone took a moment to ponder.

"Okay then, Dan," Runo said. "Let's do it!" Everyone cheered and ran out. Alice pulled out her Dimensional Transporter and they warped to the top of Ever Peak. As they went, they noticed water and ground beginning to mix.

"Did you notice that? Earth's beginning to change!" Sonic said, pointing. They even noticed floating streams of lava around the ocean.

"We have to hurry and place those cores in! But then, how can we make them stable with the rest of Vestroia?" Samus stated. Everyone shrugged as they threw their Bakugan and went to Vestroia. When they landed, they noticed that Vestroia was changing as well. Nobilion walked up to them.

"Nobilion! We need you open a portal to the center so we can try to fix this!" Drago explained.

"No problem, Drago! Give that Naga a good 'ol butt-whooping for me!" the Pyrus Tigrerra said, throwing a portal card. It opened, and they walked through the portal. Once inside, they confronted Naga and Metal Sonic.

"I see you've arrived in time!" Naga cackled.

"Alright, Naga! Let's finish this!" Drago said, shooting a fireball that the Darkus Dragonoid dodged

"Oh, no. I'm not going to fight, but _he_ is!" he said, pointing to a portal that had opened. Out of it came a very familiar creature. His body was shining silver, his five quills stood up, he had shoes that were red on one side and blue on the other, his eyes looked like longer versions of the simple 'evil eyes' that kids drew, his irises were green, and finally, he had two long spikes that came from his back that looked like long shoulder blades.

"Holy crap. Nazo _is _real!" Sonic explained. All three villains stared in slight shock.

"How do you know my name, creature?" Nazo asked, angering Sonic by basically calling him a lower being.

"Heh, you actually have a video on our world!" Sonic said to Nazo. Nazo didn't seem the slightest bit fazed.

"Naga told me about that. That video doesn't do my powers the slightest bit of justice! Clearly the maker has underestimated me," Nazo mocked.

(That's what Nazo would say, not me. Kazo showed me the videos. That dude is off-the-charts powerful!)

Naga stared. That video… didn't show his full strength after all?

"Chaos Control." Nazo disappeared in a blue flash. Sonic looked around, but wasn't expecting Nazo to reappear… right in front of him. Sonic had no time to react, when Nazo's fist connected with his stomach and sent him flying!

"GAAHH!" Sonic screamed as he went at least a mile or two. Sonic managed to reopen his eyes and zoom back.

"Now, let me show you my real power!" Nazo said as he formed a red sphere, just like the one that destroyed Metropolis in the video. It formed with a high-pitch screech. He turned and fired it at the force field and snickered evilly as multiple red flashes occurred. Naga's mouth fell as the sphere obliterated all of the Chaos Emeralds' force fields! It stopped at the eighth, but Nazo laughed. "Is that all that Master Emerald can produce after powering up the Chaos Emeralds? Pathetic!" He shot another one at it, and the flash was even bigger this time. Nazo chuckled to himself as the flash blinded everyone. They watched in sheer awe as the Super Emeralds changed back into the Chaos Emeralds and were sent through a portal to who knows where.

"Holy crud! Did you see that, Knuckles?!" Tails said, pointing the lens to the explosions and the communication screen to him. Knuckles and Eggman's eyes were widened, and their mouths hung open stupidly. Nazo disappeared in a flash of blue. The heroes looked to see Naga and Metal in the same state.

'But how?' Naga asked himself. 'Oh, man, I've really done it. I got someone too powerful, and he's only doing this for his own reasons!' However, his thoughts were distracted when energy waves began pouring out like crazy!

"What's going on?!" Dan yelled.

"There's nothing to keep Vestroia stable! Grah!" Drago roared. A large wave sent them into the portal, and they were knocked into the ground in Wardington.

_30 seconds later…_

Dan was the first to get up. He was stunned for a bit, but got up first to look around. He didn't see the Emeralds around, but everyone else was unconscious. He went over and shook everyone awake.

"Dan?" Runo asked groggily. "What happened?"

"We ended up back on Earth. However, Nazo and the Emeralds are gone. He must be looking for them to get them to that altar on Sonic's world," Dan explained. Meanwhile, in the downtown section of Westopolis, Nazo had just retrieved three of the Emeralds, fighting through massive military forces. He flew into the sky.

"Three down, five to go," he snickered. He placed his hand out and created another red sphere in an ear-piercing screech and launched it to the city. In a few seconds, it was engulfed in a red light and destroyed. The vibrations echoed. Nazo snickered as the wind blew his ears back, the red flash illuminating his sinister face. He flew off laughing. Masquerade was going to say to look for him, but a news flash interrupted him. They looked at the gigantic screen. It was the news lady they all knew. They then saw a city with flaming rubble and giant pieces of concrete that were the remains of buildings.

"What you are looking at is the remains of downtown Westopolis after a humongous explosion. Earlier reports from the three survivors say that just before, three Chaos Emeralds landed in a military protected zone, and a monster that resembled a hedgehog took them all out and stole them. Then, a red ball shot out of his hand and engulfed the city in a dome of red light. Moments later, this was all that remained. The president has announced the planned force to combat the alien: our beloved heroes, the Brawlers and Smashers." And with that, it turned off. Sonic growled.

"We have to get to Nazo before he absorbs the Emeralds' power! Let's go!" Sonic said. They ran off to it. Knuckles led them to the spot where he could feel the Chaos Energy. Once they got there, about ten minutes later, they saw the eight Emeralds near a rock.

"Now, where is that creep?" Dan asked, looking around. On cue, Nazo showed up in front of them.

"There he is!" Dan shouted.

"So this guy destroyed part of Westopolis? Well, he saved me the trouble of looking for him. I'll take care of him myself," Bowser said, using Whirling Fortress to dig under the ground.

"Hm?" Nazo said, wondering Bowser's next move. He looked down, and BAM! Bowser jumped up and punched him, making sure to stab his chin as well as send his head back. He jumped back to the others. He smirked, but watched in shock as the wound healed. Nazo's neck cracked once or twice as he put it back in place.

"Man, this guy's as tough as he is in the video! But I'm just getting warmed up!" He turned into Giga Bowser and charged. "Let's see you heal from this!"

"Hmph," Nazo said. Everyone's eyes widened as Nazo backhanded him with such force, Bowser's eyes went blank. The Koopa King was sent into a rock formation. Sonic was now angry. "How pathetic. Now for you." He shot an energy sphere at Sonic, who kicked it back. However, Nazo floated up and over it. Then, Ganondorf charged at Nazo's back as Beast Ganon. However, instead of elbowing him back like he did to Shadow in _Nazo Unleashed_, he turned around, grabbed Ganon's horn, and threw him over his shoulder without a single grunt! An angry Mewtwo was then behind him, charging a Shadow Ball.

"You've made a mistake, dealing with the ultimate Pokemon. So, surrender, or die," Mewtwo instructed. Nazo elbowed him into a large rock.

"This is the ultimate Pokemon? Ha! Now that that's done…" He turned to the others. Sonic started growling. But then, Mewtwo reappeared several feet behind Nazo and hit him in the back, leaving a mark. For a few short seconds. "Uh! You pest!" Nazo disappeared and reappeared, holding a hand in front of Mewtwo's face.

"Mewtwo!" Dan yelled.

"Uh o…" His sentence was cut short as he was blasted with a red energy beam. Sonic's pupils were dilated to the size of pinpoints.

"No!!!" he yelled, thinking the three of them perished. 'Bowser! Mewtwo! Ganondorf!' Dan was now growling along with Drago.

"You fools have wasted enough of my time."

"You monster!!!" Sonic yelled. Everyone noticed the Chaos Emeralds turn black. Nazo watched in shock as the blue blur turned into Dark Super Sonic.

"What's this?!" Nazo yelled. Once again, Sonic let his anger control him, and he flew to a rather surprised Nazo. Sonic rammed Nazo and sent him into a rock formation. Then, once he was close to hitting a mountain, Sonic Chaos Controlled over there and kicked him in the back. They all cheered him on. Then, Nazo felt his body get pummeled by Sonic's rapidly moving kicks. Nazo got back and fired a deadly energy sphere. Speedy thought Sonic would dodge it, but everyone stared as Sonic caught the light sphere in his hand, turned it black, and launched it back at him. Nazo dodged and watched as the explosion was like an atomic bomb, minus the radiation. Sonic zoomed back and appeared in front of Nazo, and then slammed both of his hands into Nazo's head. The silver hedgehog was sent into the ground. Sonic was about to hit him again, when a noise distracted him.

"GrrrraaaaAAAAHHHH!" He looked and saw a blue light, and Nazo saw it. When it stopped, a black shape was against the ground. It stood up, and it held up his right hand. The two dueling hedgehogs watched as three triangles appeared. Sonic's fur turned back to normal, and then the Chaos Emeralds went to the others.

"Ganondorf!" Another voice turned their attention. That one word sent a sudden chill up Nazo's spine.

"Recover!" Mewtwo shouted. Mewtwo's health was raised up by half of his total power. "Teleport!" Mewtwo and Ganondorf reappeared with the other heroes. Sonic went back to the others. Bowser ran back.

"Don't forget about me!!" he yelled.

"That was awesome, Sonic!" Runo said, high-fiving him. Sonic nodded, and closed his eyes. The seven Chaos Emeralds surrounded him.

"You'll want to stand back. When I have enough adrenaline, my Super Transformation is just like in the video!" he warned. Everyone got back as they spun faster and faster. Soon, they dispersed, and Sonic let out a cry to the heavens. The sheer energy sent rocks flying, making everyone hide behind larger ones that Sonic couldn't move. The small rocks crackled with lightning. From above, it looked like a dust storm. The sky was illuminated with a yellow glow. Once it calmed, they saw Super Sonic there, his body giving off slight bursts of electricity. Nazo, who was now far away, growled and Chaos Control. He got back to the others.

"Huh?" He looked to see Sonic there. "Oh, yes. Super Sonic, if I recall. If you actually believe that your Super Form will stop me, then you are more naïve than I thought."

"Heh!" Sonic said, smirking. He went up and rammed him again, sending him to a steep ramp. Sonic then did some rapid punches that no one could see, and then Spin Dashed and went up the ramp, hitting his back. Then he got above Nazo, did another Spin Dash, and knocked him to the ground before he reverted. Daisy then threw Clayf.

"Clayf, stand!" Nazo got up and looked to his left and saw the gigantic Subterra Bakugan. Clayf had his hand back, ready to punch, but wasn't prepared to be kicked by the evil being. Clayf flew back and returned to his Sphere Form, and Daisy caught him. Then, Nazo began to fire small, red, shots at Masquerade, but he kept Shadow Warping and made a pose each time.

"How fast is he!?" Nazo said, clearly not in the mood for games. Masquerade jumped on his head, and then got in the air.

"Catch me if ya can!" he mocked.

"Chaos Control!"

"Shadow Warp!" Nazo tried to kick him, but the boy disappeared.

"So, he has the ability to warp through shadows thanks to his Darkus Guardian abilities," Nazo said. "He isn't fast after all." Then, Dan appeared behind him and blasted him with fireballs. He then jumped into the air. Nazo shot out a sphere, but Dan shot a fireball and then jumped down. The two collided, and Dan threw Drago.

"Get 'em, Drago!" Drago blasted him with his Power of the Cores attack, and then roasted him. Nazo did a few punches and sent him back quite a bit.

"Did you think I'd be taken down so easily!?" Drago roared. Dan smirked and held a card.

"Ability Card, activate! Triple Node!" Dan said. Drago was powered up, but a yell prevented Drago from attacking. He saw his master, who had jumped into the air, get kicked into the ground by a chuckling Nazo. Drago's anger reached the breaking point.

"How could you?!" he growled. Drago flew after Nazo and slashed him repeatedly. Sonic started to repeatedly punch Nazo's face. Then, a solid kick made him go through a mountain. Drago used the Infinity Core to heal Dan's injuries and picked him up. He walked over to the others. They all brought out their Guardian Bakugan. Nazo returned to see all of them in position to attack. Smirking, he charged at Link. He wasn't expecting to get severely weakened by a sword slash, though. They large cut stopped bleeding, but it scarred.

"How did a blade damage me so badly?!" he growled.

"The Master Sword. Heh, it really is the blade of evil's bane!" he said, flicking the blood off of it.

"So, you have a sword that highly damages evil beings," Nazo said. "No problem." Nazo smirked and teleported behind him, and gave a swift kick to Link's back.

"Gah!" Link screamed as he was knocked unconscious. He couldn't touch the blade, but he sent it out of Link's reach with an energy blast. Runo ran up and hit him, but her fist just vibrated. Nazo smirked as hit her head with his heel, making a crater. He charged up another energy ball.

"Die!" he yelled.

"Stop!!" Tails yelled, sorta in a desperate state. Then, Sonic said two words that caught it.

"Sonic Wind!" The blue tornado stopped the attack. Sonic ran at Nazo, but was backhanded. Luckily, he caught himself. Runo got up and walked over to Dan. "I guess I can only severely damage him in Dark Super Sonic," Sonic said. "Super Sonic does some, but not a lot." Nazo lunged at the heroes, but was hit by Tails. Tails went into a Spin Dash and nailed him in the stomach. Mario jumped into the air and shot him with a Mario Finale, sending Nazo into another rock formation. Sonic then used the Sol Emeralds in his backpack to become Sol Sonic. "Time to try this out!" He charged at Nazo, his body ablaze. He then began to spin, creating a spinning field of fire. Then, almost like doing a break dance in midair, he did a spinning kick that sent a wave of fire at Nazo. The villain was knocked back.

"Now, guys!" Dan said.

"Ability Card, activate! Triple Node!" Every Bakugan that was out was powered up beyond the norm. They picked the humans up and went after Nazo. Once they reached Nazo, CF did a Falcon punch to get him on the ground.

"C'mon! Blue Falcon!" CF yelled. The blue car rammed Nazo, and CF got in. Nazo got up just in time to get a face full of metal and get knocked back some more.

"Okay, Nazo, ready for another round?" Sonic said, this time holding a lot of rings. Sonic used the Chaos Emeralds and went into Super Sonic. He ran up, jumped into the air and knocked him into the ground, but Nazo's feet stopped him from landing on his back.

"Chaos Torrent!" Nazo hollered, creating a larger and more powerful sphere. He launched it at Super Sonic, who did a midair Spin Dash. The force turned it into dust, and then Sonic saw Nazo fly up to him. The two started trading punches and then jumped back. The two were still floating.

"Not bad, not bad at all," Sonic said, charging his aura. Nazo growled and did the same.

"I'll send you to Hell!" he roared. The two charged, their auras colliding. The force was so humongous that the impact created a crater in the ground below. Their foreheads pressed against each other, trying to push away the other. In a small burst of electricity, they were gone and traded rapid punches and kicks that made it seem like their arms and legs were invisible. They began to move at supersonic speed, still trying to hit or kick the other. Then, Nazo blocked an arm and punched Sonic in the gut.

"GAH!!" Sonic yelled, coughing up blood. Nazo punched his back and sent him into the ground. Sonic returned to normal. He sat back up and was healed. Nazo blasted Dan with an energy blast, but Dan jumped back.

"Woo-hoo!" Dan hollered. Masquerade threw a Shadow Sword at stabbed Nazo in the arm. The silver hedgehog growled and zoomed to the blonde, giving him no time to react. Masquerade was knocked back at least 10 feet, but caught himself. Dammy ran up to Nazo.

"How dare you?!!!" Dammy roared as she and Zorano ran after him. Dammy pulled out something she hid for a while. "Have a taste of my Fangirl Mallet, you creep!" She bonked him and sent him to Zorano.

"Spellbinding Blast!" Nazo was shocked with Darkus energy and sent back.

"Darn," Nazo said. 'These kids are slightly tough, but they haven't seen my true power.' Then, Gorem used Boomerang Hammer to bury Nazo under a pile of rocks. Everyone celebrated, but Sara's ear twitched.

"Guys, look!" she hollered. They noticed a silver blur grab the emeralds and disappear.

"Hey! Where'd he go?" Sonic hollered.

"I'll give you one guess. The only place he can go to get more power!" Eggman said from the camera.

"The Master Emerald Shrine on Angel Island!" they yelled. All of the Smashers and Brawlers joined hands and let Sonic dash them to their destination. Within a minute, they found the island in the sky. It was surrounded by Vestroian energy. Using Spring Jump, they got on the island.

"Okay, where is he?" Dan said.

"Sonic!" Masquerade yelled. They ran to see Nazo on the Master Emerald. The other seven were on the surrounding pillars. The sky started to become black with storm clouds.

"Nazo!" Sonic yelled.

"You're too late, Sonic! I have all the emeralds on the altar. With these elements I will annihilate this planet! I am pure darkness!" Lightning crackled through the sky. "With the seven Chaos Emeralds and the Master Emerald, I will go beyond the strength of a god. Perfect Chaos is nothing compared to me! Sonic! Dan! Mario! Everyone and everything you know is coming to an end! Witness the raw power… of darkness!!"

"Man, that guy loves to monologue!" Sonic groaned. An emerald began to glow as it shot out white lightning to the other. Soon, all of the emeralds were glowing white and connected by white electricity. Within seconds, the whole island shot a red beam into the sky. Lightning filled the sky and caused massive tremors around the world. Heavy winds wracked the seas, creating massive waves. The beam turned into a red bubble that surrounded the island.

Nazo laughed as he began to transform. As it happened, his voice became higher and more menacing. His body became a red-orange color, his eyes turned yellow, his irises were now red, and blue markings were on the outer side of each eye. Rings appeared on his wrists and ankles, and his shoes became black boots with a yellow triangle along the top to the toes. His gained more spikes on his head and were more evenly spread, he got two more going down to his neck, and he gained two more spikes on his back. The four spikes on his back changed their angels to each other to make it seem like he had an X on his back.

**Can the heroes stop Nazo in his Perfect form? What will be the outcome of this fight? Well, you'll have to find out!**

**Do you think I captured Nazo's attitude and powers well? Or do you think I overdid it by quite a bit?**


	49. A Clash of Power Titans!

**A/N: All right! No one said I overdid Nazo's capabilities! Awesome! Okay, time for Review Response!**

**Natureking129(guest): The forbidden moves do sound interesting. I'll think about it.**

**GammaTron: Well, I don't think that will be needed. One, there are a heck of a lot more people around. Two, Sonic has a form that wasn't used in Nazo Unleashed. The hint for it is… Sonic needs a HECK of a lot of rings.**

**Pikana: Duck and cover and get the sunglasses? Hah ha hah! That's funny!**

**CloneGirl: Well, Nazo is this mysterious hedgehog that shows up for only about a few seconds or so in Sonic X. His attacks are in this series of fan-made videos called **_**Sonic: Nazo Unleashed**_**. It's on YouTube. Kazo showed me all four videos. As for your other comments, let's see here……………………………… uh………………… hm……. **

**alxkend: You got that right, pal! It is gonna heat up to near that point!**

**xXShikigamiXx: Yes, it is bad, and yes, they will be okay, but that doesn't mean none of them won't get hurt! There will be pain!!!**

**PEJP Bengtzone: I don't think that will be necessary, since Sonic has another form. Also, for the Duel Disk, I might change the time when Yugi shows up, if I can get enough info as to what happens in the series. But I don't understand what you mean about the Character Cards. If you are referring to the fact that the Brawlers haven't used them for their Bakugan for quite a while, I never got around to it. They still have them.**

**For all of you, I have redone Ch. 2 and Ch. 3. Feel free to check them out!**

**Okay, the final thing I want to say is that Chapter 49 has been redone. First off, I made it to where no one saw past the part where Knuckles senses the Emeralds changing. So, they have no idea why Nazo is trying so hard to destroy them. He'll give his explanation at the beginning of the next chapter. Also, I redid a couple transformation sequences to look like the ones in the video. Hope you enjoy the added drama!**

"Okay, Perfect Nazo!" Sonic said, going into Super Sonic. "Let's see if you're as tough as you are in the video!" Dan tried to grab his wrist, but failed. Sonic went at sonic speed and punched his forehead, but all that happened was a clanging sound. "What?!" Nazo disappeared and went into the air. "You'll pay for that!" Sonic did a Spin Dash and tried to ram Nazo. Nazo attacked back by stopping the Spin Dash with his hand. Then, Nazo blasted Sonic with a black beam, sending him into the ground. "AAAUUGH!!" Dan caught him.

"Sonic?"

"Okay… he is as tough as he is in the video," he said, getting out of Dan's grip. Drago activated the Infinity Core and healed Sonic's wounds. Dan stopped Sonic.

"You're wounds may be healed, but you have little energy. Go get some rings. A bunch of them!" Dan said. Sonic nodded and ran off.

"How are we going to beat him?" Shun asked Dan.

"How should I know?"

"Well, how did Nazo get defeated in the video?!" Runo snapped.

"I dunno! It's not my fault the computer screws up every time it gets to the part when Sonic and Shadow recover under that rock!" Dan yelled back.

"Concentrate on Nazo! You Guardians, stop this island from collapsing!" Samus yelled. Dan calmed down and with the others, lowered the sky to the ground and connected it to Sonic's world. Nazo flew after the Vestroian Guardians, but they dodged. Dan used Burst Flare to get in the air.

"Let me show you the power of Pyrus!" Dan said. "Mega Fire Blast!" Dan shot out the stream of fire. "Hah!" Nazo waited, and then slapped it off to the side. "Grr… Nova Rocket!" Dan zoomed after him. Nazo seemed to flash quickly, and he stopped time with his Super Chaos Control. He slowly flew over to Dan and unleashed a black laser, sending him into a rock.

"Ouch! That had to hurt!" Pikachu grimaced. They noticed Dan's eyes flash red.

"GRAAHHH!" Dan yelled. He was now angry.

"Oh, man. Dan's never been really angry before. I don't like this," Shun foreshadowed. Dan's whole body was in flames of rage.

"Nova Rocket!" The flame shout out so quickly, Dan looked like he did a flaming Chaos Control. He grabbed hold of Nazo's neck and rammed him into a wall. "Mega Fire Blast!" The close quarters caused the attack to create a massive explosion that heated up the whole island. Dan was standing at the bottom of a crater he made, trying to catch his breath. "Darn. That was tiring." Nazo appeared beside him.

"Heh," Nazo snickered, obviously amused.

"Just… who are you?!"

"I'm the ultimate life form!" Nazo said, delivering a kick to Dan's stomach, sending him into the air. Nazo used Chaos Control again and slammed him to send him back down, into Sonic who had just got back. They ended up covered in rocks.

"What are we gonna do? I know Dan and Sonic are okay, but still!" Marucho said.

"I don't know. Even our attacks aren't working…" Mewtwo growled. "I can't believe that jerk!" Eggman continued to watch with no popcorn or drinks. Way too serious for that. Everyone noticed that a section of the rocks heated, and Dan climbed out. Tails had his arms crossed as he was in deep thought. Suddenly, a strange sense came over him.

"Hey! The Chaos Emeralds!" Tails said. Everyone turned to see the Emeralds glow and get bigger.

"So this is how they become the Super Emeralds?" Alice asked. Once all of them grew, the Master Emerald formed a white dome, and they created a flash of light. Then, a multicolored laser shot out of the rocks, obliterating them. Sonic was now Hyper Sonic again. Nazo turned.

"Hyper?!" Nazo growled.

"Did you think you could beat me? By turning into a monster?" Sonic asked, clearly ready for a fight. Nazo stared a bit and closed his eyes, smirking.

"You can pull all the tricks you want. It'll only delay the destruction of this planet," Nazo said. He turned to the rest of the group and charged a black energy ball. However, Hyper Sonic was way too fast for that. He kicked Nazo right in the head, sending him through one mountain and into another.

"Too easy!" he said. Nazo got out and teleported into the sky.

'This is impossible…' Nazo thought.

(Hyper Sonic never did anything in _Nazo Unleashed_ but fuse with Hyper Shadow, so I'm giving him stuff to do!)

"Hey! Marucho! Why don't you cool him down?" Sonic said. Marucho nodded and powered up.

"Twin Aqua Dragons!" The two dragons hit Nazo, but all they did was soak him. He didn't budge an inch.

"Hey, Nazo, how about I dry you off?" Dan taunted. "Mega Fire Blast!" This time, it hit the target, but Nazo was only pushed back a few inches.

"Time for you to see the light!" Runo said. She activated her powers. "Haos Sphere!" She blasted Nazo and blinded him. She shot another, but even when blinded for a bit, Nazo backhanded it out of the way.

"Sheesh, he's tough!" Julie said. She turned her Subterra powers on. "Rockfall Trap!" She buried Nazo under a pile of rocks. Shun used his Gale Blade to deliver some cuts, but Nazo blasted the rocks away and dodged it. Masquerade used his Shadow Sword to destroy the rocks that came for them.

"You're a pretty good swordsman, buddy!" Dan said.

"Thanks. Okay, so who's gonna get 'em next?" he replied.

"I'm not gonna take the spotlight until he goes Hyper Perfect, if he does, that is," Sonic said. "Why don't the Smashers who didn't use their Final Smashes go?" Everyone agreed with that. Nazo created another black ball and launched it. Samus used her Zero Laser, but the giant sphere began to push it back. Samus realized her suit would fall any minute, so Pikachu used Volt Tackle and went inside. The force of her attack sent the sphere of electricity into it, and Pikachu jumped out. The laser disappeared, and the attacks merged into a black, white, and green sphere that ended up collapsing on itself and making a light green blast. All three of them were pushed back.

"Mewtwo! Get my Master Sword!" Link hollered. Mewtwo used Teleport and then lifted it with Confusion. He used Teleport again and gave it to him.

"Thanks. Now I'll let him have a dose of my Triforce Slash!" Link hollered. He shot out his Triforce, but didn't expect another solid one to appear behind it. He turned to see that Ganondorf had shot out his. Mewtwo was rushing forward and Link got the message. Link started to slash away, and the final slash made Nazo get trapped in the second.

Mewtwo used his Shadow Storm to blast Nazo, and just when it cracked, Nazo broke free by using his aura. He charged and punched Mewtwo with both of his hands, and then Chaos Controlled in front of Link. He then rammed him in the stomach then repeatedly punched him as they went forward. Once at a rock, Nazo blasted Link far away to where no one could see him. Sonic reverted back to normal and tried to contact them.

"Mewtwo! Link! Come in!" Sonic hollered into his Bakupod. "Come on, guys, answer!" No response. Sonic had a feeling that they were unconscious, but he couldn't shake the latter. R.O.B. rushed forward to blast Nazo with his Diffusion Beam, but then Nazo grabbed the robot by the neck and threw him into a mountain. Sonic was boiling with rage.

"You fools are destroying yourselves," Nazo huffed, charging a large, black energy sphere. Sonic was now on the ground, supporting himself with his elbows. Everyone saw small, yellow energy lines coming off the ground.

"How dare you?!" Sonic yelled, his eyes going blank.

"Huh?!" The Super Emeralds went black, and Sonic suddenly changed into Dark Hyper Sonic.

"I wasn't expecting that," Nazo said, launching the sphere. It came to Sonic, who backhanded it into a mountain that was disintegrated. Nazo rushed forward and punched Sonic, but it met the same results from earlier. It didn't even make a scratch! Sonic gave him one good punch and floated into the air.

He unleashed one Sonic Wind, then another, and after a few seconds, the blue tornadoes formed a bright blue dome. Runo then launched a Haos Sphere, and it hit the dome. It turned a bright green and exploded, badly damaging Nazo. He emerged from a pile of rocks, his body bruised and blood dripping from several deep cuts. As before, they healed in a matter of seconds. He barely had time to dodge when Marth used his Critical Hit.

"How was that, Nazo?" Marth said as he let DK use Head Butt to bury Nazo up to his arms. He then proceeded to use his Konga Beat that sent shockwaves of sound through the hedgehog.

"Chaos Torrent!" He shot a super-powered Chaos Torrent at DK, sending him into the sky and back down to the others. Now it was time for the Bakugan to try. Tigrerra and Hydranoid charged at Nazo to use Tiger Slash and Terminal Trident, but Nazo punched Tigrerra into Hydranoid. Drago used Power of the Cores.

"That'll damage him for sure!" Drago said. Nazo stuck out his palm and smirked as the attack hit it. The two energies bounced off in several directions.

"Man! What will it take to bring him down?!" Dan yelled.

"I don't know, but all of our Bakugan aren't doing too well," Shun said. "Skyress!" The green phoenix hit a mountain and went through it before returning to her sphere form. Soon, all of the Bakugan ended up defeated.

"Okay then. I guess I'll have to take it from here," Sonic said, still in Dark Hyper Mode. He had 100 Rings left. "Drago, use the Infinity Core on Link, Mewtwo, and R.O.B." Drago did so. Sonic charged at Nazo, who did the same. The two collided, and the shockwave they made was much bigger. They created another large crater.

The two dueling hedgehogs took to the skies and began to give it their all. Sonic kicked him and made another shockwave, and Nazo was knocked back. Nazo used his power to stop himself, and then punched Sonic in the face getting the same result. Sonic charged at Nazo to punch his left cheek, but Nazo dodged and tried to kick Sonic in the chin.

Sonic also dodged, and the two continued in this pattern. The two were evenly matched. Sonic then did a midair Spin Dash and nailed Nazo in the chest. He aimed Nazo downward, and continued to buzz saw him until they made touchdown, resulting in a black energy blast. Sonic reverted to normal, and then got kicked in the back of the head. He skidded along the ground, managing to pull the brakes.

He closed his eyes and turned back into Hyper Sonic. Nazo used Chaos Control to warp in front of Sonic, but was met with a head ram. Sonic repeatedly punched Nazo, hitting every part of Nazo he could reach. Then, he gave a final kick to send Nazo into a mountain. Next, he used Spin Dash and Ancient Light to knock Nazo high into the sky. Everyone saw two small black shapes go up into outer space.

"Good luck, Sonic," Dammy said. Nazo, who had recovered, looked at Hyper Sonic. Sonic waved and took off, going around space for rings. Once he got a reasonable 500, he zoomed back to Nazo.

"Okay, let's go!" Sonic said. Nazo growled as he formed another dark sphere. It went to Sonic, who used Sonic Wind. The two energies hit each other and made a large, fiery explosion that lit up the dark, stormy sky. Sonic punched Nazo through an asteroid and went after him. Nazo recovered, and with unimaginable strength, threw a different one at him. Sonic used Spin Dash to break through it, and then the two began to travel at light-speed. Fists and feet were moving so fast that you couldn't see them. Sonic got in a few good kicks, and Nazo got a couple punches. Nazo and Sonic both were getting worn out from the action.

"I have to admit, Sonic, I'm actually impressed!" Nazo said. "But can you handle this?!" He formed another black ball, but this time, it was with both hands. It was even bigger than the red one. Sonic smirked as Nazo launched it.

"Time Break!" Sonic yelled. Being Hyper increased the amount of time it stayed active. He went around it and to Nazo, and kicked him forward. Sonic then went behind his back and knocked him to the black ball. Sonic then went up and stomped on his head, knocking him down. Finally, Sonic was at just the right angle and nailed Nazo in between the shoulder blades, sending into his own attack. Time Break stopped as Nazo was engulfed in the sphere.

"GAAAHHH!!!" Nazo yelled. The sphere exploded and blasted Nazo back into the atmosphere. Dan looked up.

"Hey, is that Nazo crashing down?" he asked. Marucho looked up.

"Yep, that's definitely Nazo! And there's Sonic!" Sonic flew toward Nazo and gave him a solid punch to the face, sending the red-orange hedgehog into the ocean. He hit the water with a large splash. Sonic got on the ground and walked to the others.

"Yeah!"

"Nice job, Sonic!" Tails said, giving the seemingly multicolored hedgehog a high-five. Everyone started to celebrate, thinking that Nazo was defeated. Meanwhile, in the ocean, the unconscious Nazo sunk to the ocean floor. Once he touched the bottom, he woke up and growled in his head.

'Darn. That hedgehog is getting on my nerves! Well, it doesn't matter. There's no way he'll beat me! I will destroy this planet, no matter what!' Nazo growled. 'GrrrrrrRRAAHHHH!!!!' Nazo unleashed a blast that surrounded him, and it shot into the sky. Everyone stopped as they heard rumbling from below. They turned to face the coast, and a large tower of water shot up.

When it went back to the ocean, they saw Nazo surrounded by a black sphere. Dan handed Sonic a bunch of rings to keep his form going. Sonic was now back at 300. They were about 20 feet in the air, and they rammed each other, creating a much more massive wave of energy. All of the others were pushed back by at least 5 feet. Rocks were flying every which way, and the two went at it again. Shockwaves grazed the landscape and sliced the sky as the two super-powered hedgehogs continued to attack each other.

'Man, of all the times I wish I could launch energy attacks!' Sonic thought. 'At least Chaos Spear or Chaos Blast might help!' He knew his Invincibility item wouldn't work, because Nazo could hurt Super Sonic. 'I still don't get that. Huh. Guess it means that Super and Hyper aren't invincible, but they are very strong forms. They can handle very strong attacks, but not super strong ones,' Sonic realized. He landed his feet on a mountain and jumped off, punching Nazo in the chin.

Nazo had enough, and grabbed Sonic by the neck. He began to shove him through a lot of rocks and then pressed him against one. He blasted another black beam and sent him to the far side of the island. Sonic hit the ground and stood up. He Chaos Controlled to Nazo used an up-close Sonic Wind, sending Nazo flying 20 feet. Soon, the two went back down to the ground near the altar, both running out of energy.

"Why are you so resilient?! Don't you realize it's useless?!" Nazo yelled.

"Nazo, since there are beings from the future that our fans of ours, I know we'll defeat you!" Sonic said, surprising the hedgehog. The Hyper hedgehog smirked at Nazo's reaction. Nazo growled.

"I'll just have to try harder, then!!" he roared. Nazo unleashed all of the fury he could, catching Sonic off guard. Nazo bashed Sonic's face repeatedly, then flew behind him and used a two-fisted punch on Sonic's back. While Nazo was distracted, all of the Haos and Darkus Bakugan charged their moves. Runo and Masquerade charged theirs as well, and Drago charged up his Power of the Cores. Soon, all of the 11 attacks were launched. Nazo charged another ball.

"Die, Sonic!" he growled. Sonic pointed behind him. "Hm?" Nazo turned to get blasted by light and dark energies. Sonic smirked as Nazo was engulfed in an explosion that sent him skyrocketing to the sun. Sonic got in front of Nazo. Nazo then did something that Sonic didn't see him do before. He Spin Dashed. Sonic chuckled as he stopped him with his palm, and he blasted Nazo with a Sonic Wind. Nazo recovered and the two started to kick each other back and forth.

Nazo smirked as he looked at Sonic and used Super Chaos Control. He floated over to Sonic and shot a beam at him, launching him to where the others were. Sonic hit the ground and made a huge impact, sending rocks and energy every which way. Everyone ended up hitting something and Sonic was trapped under some rocks.

He immediately pushed them away, and the others got back up. They regrouped to form a new strategy and Nazo showed up, laughing. Tails and Speedy sent all of the positive energy they had into Sonic, letting the hedgehog reach maximum power. Sonic charged at Nazo. The red-orange hedgehog's eyes widened to where the blue edges on the outer sides of them disappeared. He expected to be punched, but Sonic decided to put his afterimages to use.

He flew around Nazo, the three afterimages seeming to create clones. Nazo knew what Sonic was doing. He decided to play tricks with them. Nazo didn't have a Chaos Blast, so he had to wing it. Nazo fired multiple small shots at Sonic, but each time it was an afterimage. Sonic then stopped and began to Spin Dash. Nazo began to charge, but noticed yellow orbs began to go around Sonic in no set pattern.

They just went around, orbiting around the rainbow ball. They then stopped coming together, and Sonic stopped Spin Dashing. He still had the yellow orbs around him. With a smirk, Sonic took off. Nazo looked around, to see a yellow stream come at him at light speed. It hit him, and Nazo tried to grab Sonic. However, he got a sharp pain in his back. Sonic was going every which way, and Nazo just couldn't seem to get a lock.

"Stand still!" he growled, trying to hit Sonic with something. Rocks, energy blasts, his fists, anything he could use to hit that hedgehog! However, all of his efforts failed, as Sonic was just too fast. The frustrated Nazo continued to look in every direction possible, just missing catching the speed demon in his gaze. 'How fast is this hedgehog?!' he thought angrily. Sonic repeatedly rammed Nazo in all directions, moving at an incredible speed.

"Man, I didn't know Sonic could go that fast!" Dan said.

"Yeah. I'm getting dizzy just trying to keep my eye on him!" Masquerade said, trying to see Sonic. Sonic then vanished. Thinking Sonic wouldn't be coming back, he aimed a sphere at the ground. Everyone's mouths dropped when Sonic reappeared and gave a sift kick to his face. The frown on Sonic's face became another grin as Nazo went through at least five more rocky hills.

"If this keeps up, those two will end up destroying the whole island!" Dan worried.

"Not on my watch!" Drago said. His whole body shone the colors of the rainbow, and the entire island was repaired. Nazo looked at Drago.

'Are the cores really that powerful?' he wondered. His thoughts were interrupted when he saw Sonic. However, he was holding something in his left hand and surrounded by something. What surrounded him were two Triforce shapes, and what he was holding was…the Master Sword! Sonic smirked at Drago, who activated the cores. Back in Smash World, Zelda sent her Triforce out, and it went to Sonic. He now had three of them around him, and the actual Triforce pieces went inside his hand. The cores made the sword glow blue, and the Triforce appeared on his left hand. Sonic went to the ground, pulled out the metal glove and attached it to his right hand, and then turned Calibur to normal size and grabbed it. He flew up just as quickly.

"Take this, Nazo!" Sonic yelled. He first swung Calibur to stun him some. Then, using the first Triforce shape, he trapped and shocked Nazo. Then he slashed away a few times with the Master Sword, sending him back by at least 40 feet. Then, Sonic got behind him and repeated the cycle, sending him forward. Sonic repeated the process a third time, and then finished by using both swords at once. The Triforce dispersed back into their wielders, and Perfect Nazo hit the ground, making a humongous black dome of light that went into space.

The crater Nazo formed was immense. Sonic floated down and handed the Master Sword back to Link, and he placed the glove and Calibur back in his backpack. It was then that mocking laughter rang in everyone's ears. Nazo floated back into the air, breathing hardly.

"Well… you all aren't as easy to kill as I thought! I'm also impressed that you managed to turn the Chaos Emeralds into the Super Emeralds, which even I can't do. However, this also works in my favor," he said, forming what looked like a small, black vortex. "Now, I can absorb the new reservoir of negative energy!" The Super Emeralds turned black, and their energy went into small spheres. The Emeralds were now clear. They went into Nazo, and he began to transform again!

Nazo's rings turned black, and the triangles turned into crescents, the inside of it facing the tongue of his boots. His irises became blue, and his pupils were now snake-like. The blue markings became black. His body crackled with an aura of black electricity. Nazo now had more power than ever!

**Things are getting tougher for the Brawlers and Smashers! Can they stop Hyper Perfect Nazo, even though they never saw him in the video? Find out in the third part!**


	50. The Power of Ultra

**A/N: Okay! It's time for Review Response!**

**GammaTron: No, I'm not going to. There's no way on Earth that those forms can be more powerful than Hyper Sonic, and Hyper Sonic isn't powerful enough for this form.**

**xXShikigamiXx: Heh! That was kinda funny. But I actually think Nazo could beat Arceus. No offense to any Pokemon fans out there!**

**alxkend: Oh, things are only getting warmed up!**

**PEJP Bengtzone: I really still don't think it could work. If I did that, then I'd have to make it to where the Master Emerald could boost the Sol Emeralds, come up with a name for them, then make it to where the powered up Sol Emeralds could fuse with Hyper Sonic, then…it would be way too confusing! **

**CloneGirl: Giving Nazo a title of superiority? Man, CloneGirl! I know a lot of people think Nazo's awesome with all of that power, but seriously!**

**DraconLyoko: Well, I've already thought about one of the shows you suggested. Not telling what, though! And I'm glad you like the chapter!**

**Pikana: Man, people are loving this four-part battle! So, you think your eyes are unworthy of this? Just wait till the end of this chapter!**

**Natureking129(guest): If you're thinking what I think you're thinking, I've had that idea planned out for a month! Kazo gave it to me. That idea will be shown at the end of this chapter. I don't know if I'll make a flash animation video from this and put it on YouTube. My internet sucks. For the rating, just say infinity if you want to give it that. You can't add anything to it, as it would still be infinity. Even googolplex (it's not googleplex) isn't infinite.**

**Also, Sonic won't need that powerful of a form. Just see what he does at the end of the next chapter! Also, for Mario's Forbidden Move, if I ever use it, how about a Flaming Phoenix Googolplex attack instead of a Fireball Googolplex?**

**Now, on to the battle!**

The aura of black lightning faded. The tension in the air was a wet blanket, seeming to choke off the slightest amount of air. Nazo was now at full power.

"Understand this," Nazo began, "Tails, Chip, Smashers, Brawlers, Naga, Metal Sonic, all of you combined could not match the amount of Chaos Energy that I now possess. Although you may be faster than me, Sonic, you speed will mean nothing when I destroy this planet." Sonic clenched his fist more tightly than before. "Now before everything on Earth and all of the worlds connected it, I'll leave you with my final explanation. You see, being born from pure darkness and evil makes me naturally inclined to as obtaining as much power as possible. In time, I will have more energy than any star, any universe!" Nazo had his arms crossed as he continued. "But, there is one entity that I will never be able to surpass…" Nazo closed his eyes in thought and slight humiliation. Sonic thought, then jerked his head toward the altar.

"That's right, Sonic, the Master Emerald," he continued, reopening them, "a source of infinite energy, created by the gods themselves! No matter how much energy I absorb, I will never be able to reach a level of infinity. Therefore, the only solution…is to detonate the planet, which in turn, will shatter the Master Emerald into thousands of pieces, dispersing them throughout the galaxy, along with their power, making it impossible to be restored. I will not be doomed to eternal subordination towards that rock!" he finished, holding a fist in front of his face.

(Okay, I admit, most of Nazo's lines are from the videos, just slightly altered. Like that whole monologue, the only things I edited were where he said 'Tails, Chip, Smashers, Brawlers, Naga, Metal Sonic', 'pure darkness and evil', and 'doomed'. The rest is not original.)

Everyone growled in anger and determination.

"All this, just to be the ultimate being? No way!" Dan and Sonic growled.

"You are annoyingly stubborn. Obviously, you'll resist."

"Wait. If you are trying to destroy this planet, then that means…" Naga began, and then he gasped.

"That's right, Naga. Everything, even the cores will be annihilated! I have no interest in serving you. I have no interest in just destroying the Brawlers and Smashers, just to get you the cores. I came here for my own reasons!" Nazo finished.

"W-Well… then…" Naga stammered. He turned to the heroes. "You guys kick his butt!" Naga looked at Metal Sonic. "Metal!"

"Chaos… Control!" The two villains disappeared. Nazo crossed his arms again, closed his eyes, and started to snicker. Sonic then closed his eyes.

"Okay, Nazo! You've had your fun! Now, I'll show you a power beyond Hyper!!"

"What?!" Sonic activated his Magnet Shield, and his Ultra form powered it up. Rings all over Sonic's alternate Earth were affected and brought to Sonic, filling the dark and stormy sky with golden lights. Once they came together, the positive energy was negated. All of the rings in the world were within range of the weakened shield, and Sonic transformed into Ultra Sonic. The blinding blue light engulfed a 30 foot radius. "No!" Nazo growled. The light disappeared, and there he stood.

"Heh!" Sonic smirked.

"I know that took a lot of rings to unleash that form, but tell me. Do you have enough rings… to stop this!?" The veins in Nazo's eyes were now visible, and black electricity surrounded his hands. He used Chaos Control and got into the air. Two black spheres formed in each of his hands, and he started to bring them together. Sonic moved at an incredible speed and delivered a nasty kick to Nazo's chest, sending him far away. Sonic then Spin Dashed after him, hitting multiple spots over and over.

Then, Nazo got back and charged up, and Sonic did the same. The Brawlers and Smashers just saw two orbs in the dark sky. Once was purple, and the other was blue. They rammed each other, producing yet another vertical shockwave that kicked dust storms and separated air masses. The two then flew in one solid direction, delivering short-range rams.

The two hedgehogs were moving so fast that all Eggman could see were lines of force and small, white energy shockwaves. Nazo delivered a few kicks to Sonic's back, sending him flying a bit. Sonic then charged his Ancient Light and flew at Nazo like a speeding rocket, leaving a lot of afterimages. Nazo slightly cringed with fear and held his hand out to try to stop him, but Sonic gave the hardest kick he could give to Nazo's stomach.

Sonic then Spin Dashed and traveled to a rock, then went to Nazo. He then kicked him up to space for a second time. Nazo then had his hand pointed down, and a small sphere formed. However, this one was slightly different, as energy pulses made it look irregular. Sonic shot out a Sonic Wind as Nazo fired, creating a fiery supernova that lit up the stormy sky below. Then, the two flew at breakneck speed. Streaks of red and light blue continuously collided, making large, white energy blasts that quickly disappeared.

Dan counted at least 20 of them going through space. Sonic then flew around Nazo, moving so fast it looked like there was a light blue ring going around the red creature. Nazo then decided he had enough, and decided to do the same. Nazo finally caught up to Sonic, and slammed his head with his fists. The shining blue hedgehog crashed into the moon. He then Spin Dashed back into Nazo, then sped up, sending him back to Earth. Nazo was engulfed in flames, then started to slow himself. He landed back on the ground with both feet. Ultra Sonic reappeared in front of him.

Nazo had enough. He would pull off his most dangerous technique, no matter what! Nazo leapt into the air and made both spheres. In a show of force, he brought his hands above his head and combined the black spheres! Purple light washed over them. The sphere that formed was literally the size of the island! The sphere sent out black waves of negative energy. Rocks floated into the air, as it actually produced a gravitational force. The black waves began to tear the island apart. Sonic growled as he unleashed a Sonic Wind. Others followed his lead.

Dan fired a Mega Fire Blast, Runo used Haos Sphere, Shun used his Ventus Gale, Julie used Sand Wave, and Masquerade threw multiple Shadow Slashes. The giant sphere was starting to get pushed back! Nazo held out his hand and fired five smaller spheres, making the outside edges of the sphere pulse with energy. It was like a black sun! The sphere began to push back to them. Chip decided that it was his turn to help! Charging his green shield of light energy, he took to the skies, giving the attacks more power. The attacks broke the large sphere and unified to form a golden laser. Chip recoiled back, and the beam went for Nazo.

"You pests!!" he hollered. "Die, all of you!" He placed his hand out and returned the blast, adding his own black laser. The ground below was carved with black and gold lasers.

(Hyper Perfect Nazo used only one move. So, I'm letting him use more!)

Ultra Sonic charged at Nazo, ready to fight like never before. Nazo crossed his arms in front of him for defense. Sonic kicked them a few times, and then used a Spin Dash on his face. Nazo jumped back and fired multiple black spheres at him. A couple hit their mark, but most missed completely. Nazo decided to show them his powered up Chaos Torrent. It was a mix of red and black energy, swirling together in a small sphere. He launched it at Sonic. There was no way that hedgehog would be able to backhand that… Nazo's eyes widened as Sonic did just that!

"So, Nazo, are you enjoying the honor of facing my Ultra Form?" Sonic asked to taunt him. Nazo threw a punch, and Sonic disappeared. He reappeared behind him. Apparently, Ultra Sonic was good at using Chaos Control. Once at Nazo's back, Sonic used Sonic Wind to send him soaring. Nazo stopped himself in midair, and then used Chaos Control. Sonic looked around, wondering where the heck Nazo went. A loud yelp interrupted his thoughts. It was obviously Tails. Sonic zoomed over at light-speed and got back to the altar. The sight before him was nearly horrific.

Dan had a sore arm, it looked like Tails had bruises all over his belly, and all of the others were hurt in some form. Drago was currently slashing away at the punching Nazo. Using the Infinity Core, he managed to create a shield that protected him. The rest of the energy went to the others. Sonic noticed Speedy wasn't around, when he noticed him, eyes closed, still standing behind the rock and moving the camera. Dan got back up, cursing at the pain still ringing in his arm. Sonic gave another bone-breaking punch, this time in Nazo's side. Nazo went into a mountain, but retaliated with a barrage of blasts. Sonic lowered to the ground, and Nazo reappeared in front of him.

The red being growled and the two charged at each other again. The two connected fists and created shockwave after shockwave. Nazo kicked Sonic in the gut, and Sonic punched his chin up. It seemed no matter what the other would endure, their wounds would heal. After all, Sonic had Drago and the rings, and Nazo had healing abilities that were stronger than Shadow's at some points. Nazo then got the upper hand and kicked Sonic into a mountain top. The blue hedgehog flinched in pain as he warped out of the tunnel the impact made.

Once outside, he had a good view of the sky. It was still stormy, an ever present fact that the negative energy was still pouring out of the evil being that floated in the air 10 feet in front of him. Sonic then lowered himself to the ground as Nazo fired multiple shots to the ground, making small explosions like mini firecrackers. Sonic then whizzed around Nazo, still keeping his feet on the ground. He basically kicked up a dust storm around Nazo. Signaling to the others that he was definitely weaker than before, the others charged. Once Sonic stopped, Dan fired a Mega Fire Blast and fried Nazo. However, before he could blast Dan, Marucho appeared and used Twin Aqua Dragons to knock Nazo to the ground.

After a quick soaking, Nazo rolled out of the way before he was hit by a Haos Freeze. Since he was stunned, Julie used Rockfall Trap to bury him. Nazo used Chaos Torrent to blast the rocks away, but then was caught in a green tornado. The wind sliced his skin open several times. Once it stopped, Masquerade jabbed his Shadow Sword into Nazo's rib. With a swift motion, he sliced a deep cut through Nazo's stomach. The sword disappeared, and so did the cut. Masquerade cringed a little. Nazo was weakened, but he was still though as ever!

Mario used the Fire Flower to power up, and then unleashed his Mario Finale on Nazo. The white, phoenix-shaped fireballs sent Nazo into the sky. Then, Link unleashed his Triforce Slash from behind. Nazo was sent into the ground and got back up, when a roar paralyzed him. He managed to look forward, and horns connected to his head for a split second as Beast Ganon rammed. He then landed in something a bit softer, but more threatening. It was Giga Bowser's humongous hand. He smashed Nazo between both, but Nazo began to push them apart. Thinking on his feet, Bowser put his arms behind his back and leapt into the air.

When he was about a few inches from the ground, he let go and put his arms to his sides, letting gravity do the rest. Nazo was squashed under his gigantic, spiked shell. Bowser reverted and got up, laughing, but then was punched in the gut by Nazo. He coughed up a bit of blood, and then was kicked back. Once he hit a rocky hill, Marth knocked Nazo into the ocean with his Critical Hit. Nazo stood there, floating above the ocean, and he fired a lot of black spheres at the heroes. DK got in front and used Konga Beat to deflect the spheres while R.O.B. managed to make his Diffusion Beam connect, sending Nazo barreling into a rock formation.

Nazo used Chaos Control to warp back, and Samus, who had regained her Power Suit, used Zero Laser to shock him. Then, Nazo recovered to see blackness. A searing pain traveled through his body as Meta Knight used Galaxia Darkness. Light returned, well, a little of it did. Yoshi then took to the skies with Super Dragon, and then blasted him with fire. Nazo blasted a black sphere, and the two engaged in trying to push the other move back. Yoshi blasted his fire breath with most of his strength. Nazo put his hand out and blasted another sphere. The first one grew bigger, and it started to push the flame back. Yoshi dodged it and unleashed another before Nazo could fire.

Then, Pikachu used Volt Tackle and zipped around Nazo. CF did the same in the Blue Falcon. Pikachu rammed into Nazo, continuously electrocuting him. Then, Captain Falcon used the vehicle to push Nazo into the sphere, causing severe pain. Then, he got back and watched Nazo get shot into the sky. Once he started to come back down, King Dedede used his Waddle Dee Army to keep him in the air and damage him. Nazo was definitely weakened, but sooner or later, he'd get stronger. Once those stopped, Kirby sucked him into his pot and blasted him out. He skidded along the ground until his head cracked a huge rock.

Mewtwo used Shadow Storm to push him further into it, and then kicked him into the air. Lucario then got higher than him and blasted him back down to Earth with Aura Storm. Nazo growled in anger and used Chaos Control to warp in front of the two Pokemon. He mercilessly punched them, and then backhanded them to send them flying until the others couldn't see them. Then, the Bakugan started to attack. Drago used Power of the Cores to weaken Nazo. Next, Apollonir summoned the might of Maximum Pyrus and roasted him. Then, Tigrerra used Tiger Slash before getting kicked into the Pyrus Dragonoids. The three reverted. Lars Lion then used Sagittarius Arrow and it went right into Nazo.

Preyas attacked next with his Giant Whirlpool. Once Nazo was soaked enough, Gorem decided to knock some sense into him with Boomerang Hammer. Once he flinched, Skyress used Tornado Destruction Apocalypse. Once he was blinded by a green tornado, Hydranoid and Reaper used Terminal Trident and Darkus Slash Frenzy. The dark energy weakened him, but not that much. Fortress used Pyro Bomb Blaze, but Nazo used Chaos Torrent to blow it out like a birthday candle. Nazo then kicked Fortress in the stomach, knocking him into Lars Lion. He grabbed hold of Preyas' arm and spun him around, then threw him into Gorem and Skyress. He then used his two sphere attack to damage Hydranoid and Reaper, causing a large explosion.

Tentaclear used Triple Flare Blinder to blind Nazo, and Sirenoid used Destructive Lullaby and knocked him to the ground with sound waves. Cycloid used Club Smash and repeatedly smashed him into the ground. Harpus then used Harpy's Rage to slice him up. Nazo healed his wounds and then twisted Harpus' hand behind her back, then kicked her head into the ground, still wearing that sadistic smirk. A mad Cycloid charged, and Nazo stuck out his foot, making the Bakugan trip and hit his head off a rock. Sirenoid bashed him into a rock with her scaly tail, but Nazo recoiled and punched her in the stomach. Then, he floated up to Tentaclear and started rapidly punching him while going forward. Those four were defeated.

"Man, what's it gonna take to stop him!?" Masquerade yelled. He threw Exedra and let him attack. He used Demon Wizard to power up, and then tried to bash him around with his nine heads. Solero, Wayvern, Frosch, and Juggernoid attacked next. A Phoenix Sol Flare was launched at Nazo, who deflected it to Wayvern. Wayvern used Big Bang Blaze to negate it. Frosch used Aqua Cyclone to trap Nazo in the water vortex, and Juggernoid used Freeze Wall to turn the water to ice. Nazo stood there, frozen. Then, using his Chaos Energy, he melted the immediate area in front of him. Chuckling, he formed two large energy spheres and cracked the ice. He brought the two together, and this time, the large sphere hit its mark. The four Bakugan were scattered.

Nazo turned to face Clayf, Oberus, and Zorano. Clayf used Atomic Brave to absorb all of his spheres, but then got kicked back. Oberus used Turmoil to pull Nazo toward her in a cyclone. Once close enough, Oberus reversed the flow of wind and blew him into a mountain. Finally, Zorano used Spellbinding Blast. The attack did barely anything, however. Nazo launched another Chaos Torrent at Clayf, and Zorano was behind him. Then, he kicked Oberus. He then flew towards the Guardians. They jumped out of the way and began to attack. Dan used Mega Fire Blast, which accomplished nothing. Nazo sent it into the air with a simple raising of his hand. He then grabbed Dan's wrist, lifted him into the air, and slammed him into the ground.

Runo used Haos Freeze and thought he was paralyzed. She launched a Haos Sphere at him, but Nazo chuckled as he moved his hand to block it. The ball of light was then disintegrated by a black beam, which hit Runo. He turned to see Marucho with his two water dragons surrounding him. Marucho launched them, but with one swift thrust of his hand, the dragons were turned into a wave of water that headed for the short blonde. Then, to add to the power of the wave, he hit it with a few energy spheres. The now black wave knocked Marucho into the ground. Julie then managed to turn the ground to sand, and she used Sand Wave to send Nazo into the sky. Once it disappeared, Nazo was gone.

Julie looked around, trying to find the being of darkness. Then, a sharp pain occurred in her head, and she fell to the ground, unconscious. An angry Shun used Gale Blade to repeatedly cut him. However, when he was close enough, Nazo punched him and flew after the flying ninja. He gave a few good punches, and then kicked him to the sky. Shun landed on his feet, but collapsed from exhaustion. It was then that Masquerade decided to try. Using Shadow Slash, he watched Nazo dodge the blade that emerged from one shadow and into another. Nazo jumped into the air, and the sword flew up through his shadow. Masquerade had to concentrate, as the sky made it hard to see the shadows of the rocks and trees.

Then, once Nazo was on the ground, Masquerade stood far back, holding the tip of his Shadow Sword to Nazo's neck. Komba pulled out a few bombs, and Dammy had her Fangirl Mallet ready. Masquerade knew Nazo was stuck. He had quick reflexes, so Nazo couldn't dodge. The sword would be right there. Masquerade could slice his head off before he could say Chaos Control.

"Are you ready to admit your own foolishness?" the Darkus Guardian taunted. Dan slapped his own forehead.

'You gotta be kidding!' Dan groaned mentally.

"Hmph," Nazo said. Faster than the speed of sound, Nazo flicked his arm back and shot him with an energy sphere. As the boy went back, Nazo shot a few more, and they made contact. A rock managed to stop him. Masquerade sat up after that collision. Nazo was really tough!

"Man, if we get out of this alive, the final battle will be a piece of cake compared to this!" he groaned, falling backwards. He couldn't fight for a while. That took a lot out of him. Dammy charged at Nazo, wildly swinging her Fangirl Mallet and yelling. Nazo blasted the ground in front of her, causing a wall of dust to blind her. Using that to his advantage, he charged at her. Then, a bomb rolled in front of him and exploded, allowing Dammy to swing with all of her might. After five hits that had no effect, Nazo grabbed the mallet and hit her with it. He then threw it at the flying girl. Luckily for Dammy, she had gymnastics. She caught it and did some back flips in the air, and her mallet grazed the ground, making an excellent brake. Ultra Sonic then took over and kicked him up. He then gave a solid punch, and they went to space for another round. The others recovered, thanks to Drago. Julie looked up to see energy waves appearing through the dark clouds. Shun thought for a bit.

"I'd say it's time to take this battle upstairs!" he said. Everyone nodded, and he formed another large air bubble. Dan fired his Nova Rocket, and they took to the sky to watch the battle. Shun separated the air bubble so everyone could move around. The Bakugan didn't need it, as Vestroia had no atmosphere. It did, however, now have gravity. Sonic easily dodged all of Nazo's attacks. Nazo seemed to be getting angrier. This energy ball he formed this time had a purplish energy surrounding it, illuminating Nazo in a purple glow. He threw it at Sonic, who used Sonic Wind. He had used that move a lot.

Nazo flew at Sonic, and he slammed Sonic's head with both of his hands, making him crash into the moon. Nazo and Sonic Spin Dashed into each other, creating shockwaves that stopped short due to the lack of air. It was interesting to see that beings with Chaos Energy were able to survive in space like Bakugan could. Sonic then grabbed his foot and threw him into an asteroid. Nazo created another large sphere and blasted it to Earth, but Sonic kicked an asteroid into it, causing a large explosion that blinded all of them for a bit. The fire vanished, but the smoke lingered for a while.

The red being now formulated a new plan. Nazo decided to distract everyone else to make his big move. Sonic went up and fired another Sonic Wind, but it was destroyed easily. Then, Chip put up his shield and tried to ram him, but Nazo caught him in both of his hands. Using one hand, he flicked his forehead, and Chip crashed into an asteroid. Dan used Nova Rocket and tried to kick him with increased speed, but that did nothing. Nazo grabbed his ankle, twisted it, and blasted him. Drago used the Infinity Core to heal him. Then, Nazo used Chaos Control. He then warped behind Samus and broke her arm cannon. He then threw her into Lucario.

Shun realized that Nazo was trying to separate them. No matter the reason, he had them all gather into a group. Nazo growled. His plan wasn't working so easily. So, he decided to fire rapid shots. Hopefully that would scatter them. Sonic and Chip managed to deflect most of them, but some scorched a pants leg or sleeve of the others. Sonic then tried to punch Nazo, but Nazo grabbed his wrist and blasted him. Sonic crashed into an asteroid. He then used Spin Dash and returned, and then he rammed Nazo down into the moon. Once at about 5 feet underground, Sonic used Sonic Wind then disappeared with Chaos Control. Nazo used Chaos Control and warped to Tails, and kicked him into Sonic. He easily caught him. Tails pressed a button on his wristwatch. The Tornado 2 went into space, and Tails climbed in.

"Cyclone, engage!" he ordered. The plane turned into the well-armed walker, the Cyclone. Tails began to fire at Nazo. The bullets and lasers just bounced off of Nazo's nearly invincible body. Even the Homing Missile was useless! Nazo then shot the Cyclone, causing a series of explosions, and Drago fixed it, just as a few small explosions occurred. Link and Ganondorf decided to use a combo attack. Standing on Beast Ganon's snout, Link's arm stretching the farthest he could reach, the sword went into Nazo's body a lot farther than it would normally. Since everyone was cheering at Link, Nazo struck!

"Chaos Control!" Nazo yelled. His disappeared, and no one saw him. Then, Drago let out a roar of pain.

"Drago! What's going on!?" Dan yelled. Then, he noticed Drago's Gs decreasing back to 1000. Dan looked, and Nazo reappeared a few feet in front of them. However, it wasn't Nazo's evil laughter that sent them into shock. It was what he was holding. It was the Silent Core!!! Nazo broke out into more maniacal laughter, as the core surrounded him.

"Mwahahahahaha!!!" he laughed, obviously becoming more corrupted. The core began to shrink, and waves of dark energy pulsed through the heroes, making them unable to move further. Then it shrunk, and Nazo transformed for a third time. This time, the black electricity around him was constant. A hole appeared in the middle of his chest, and a small, purple sphere filled it. Then, once he opened his eyes, they saw that they were black. No pupils, no irises, just black all over. Nazo then lowered and took the position of some madman, and cracked his neck. "Ha ha… ha ha… hahahahahaHAA!" He laughed as he charged at them, his eyes showing no reason, no morality.

**With Nazo having immeasurable power, how on Earth will the Brawlers and Smashers stop him? **

**Okay, I'd like to say something rather important. I'm going to redo Chapters 17, 18, 19, and 20. The reason for this is because Speedy is sorta based off of a fox OC in this story I've read, and I want his appearance and situation to be more like that. So, no Theodore! Just forget about him even existing. I know you're probably wanting to call me crazy, but don't. **


	51. Power Struggle!

**A/N: Alright! It's the final Nazo chapter! After that is just one more arc, then BAM!! Final Battle! I'm so excited! But before this battle, it's time for… Review Response!!!**

**xXShikigamiXx: If you are referring to this story as Part 1, then maybe. It probably won't be 10 chapters longer. I'm going to save my other plot twists for later.**

**Pikana: Don't worry; your desires for an awesome chapter shall be fulfilled.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Well, no, I'm not doing anything like that. As for the sword, no, Sonic only has one talking sword, and that's Calibur. And then of course, it turns into Excalibur. Also, Speedy already went Super Speedy in the middle of the Ventus/Pyrus Training Chapter. However, with the changed chapters, that has been changed. Speedy won't have a Super or Hyper Form. He'll have a much different one, shown much later.**

**alxkend: Yep, he sure did!**

**CloneGirl: Well, I know that. I read your profile. It's just that I didn't think you'd take it to that level.**

**Natureking129(guest): I honestly think that the Silent Core is enough for Nazo. He wouldn't want help. Also, as for making the sequels as add-ons to this story, no-o wa-ay *shudders*! My mom is already harping at me, saying it's too long as it is! Yeah, if the Smashers and Brawlers saw your review, they would try to kill you. As for the energy blast, I have an idea like that, but only one Guardian gains that. He gains it right in this very chapter!**

**Oh, I have an announcement. To make sure the whole thing tied together, I had to change 15, 16, 21, 22, 23, and a few others with subjects related to Speedy's new arrival. So, you can forget about the ball chapter. Also, the pairing is no longer Sonic x Amy, but Speedy x Amy. Please, don't let any Sonamy fans kill me! I honestly think Speedy needs it more in this new introduction. I also found a way to weave in the Marucho x Sara and Klaus x Daisy pairings, plus Dark Hyper Sonic with it making sense.**

**Now onto the final Nazo chapter!**

Silent Core Nazo charged at the heroes, ramming into Dan with his head. The impact was enough to knock the wind out of him and send him into the moon. Mewtwo then decided to put his other moves to use. Nazo flew at him, his foot outstretched. Mewtwo used Safeguard to produce a shield. Nazo laughed as he kicked it, causing it to shatter.

"I cracked seven shields with one attack in normal form! Do you honestly think you can use them now?!!" he cackled. Mewtwo used Teleport.

"Hey, Lucario! Let's give 'em a double dose!"

"Right!" The two charged an Aura Sphere and launched them. The two spheres of spiritual energy combined and hit Nazo, not making a scratch.

"Okay, take this! Psycho Cut!" He charged forward with his arm glowing purple. He slashed away at Nazo, who failed to even flinch. He grabbed Mewtwo's arm and with unbelievable strength, karate-chopped his arm, splitting the bone. Mewtwo yelled a little, but he was quite resilient. Nazo spun and threw him into Infinity Drago.

"Infinity Demon!" Drago roared. The rainbow beam launched at Nazo, who caught it. Cackling, he redirected it to Sonic, who counteracted with a Spin Dash. Drago stopped the attack. Nazo lunged for Drago, who created a shield of positive energy. Chip and Mewtwo added their own, while Pikachu threw up a Light Screen. Nazo laughed as he floated over to it. He gently flicked the shield. Everyone stared. They then watched in horror as it cracked. After ten seconds, it shattered. Nazo punched Chip, and then reappeared behind him. He repeatedly punched and kicked the small fox's back, knocking him into Sonic. Luckily, said hedgehog caught him. Link shot out a Fire Arrow, an Ice Arrow, and a Light Arrow. Nazo turned and held out his palm, making the arrows bounce off. Link growled as Midna appeared.

"Let's give him a taste of the power of Twilight!" she said. Link nodded and became Wolf Link. He did a Spin Attack, and all that did was tickle the villain. Sonic charged at Nazo, wanting to make him pay. It was a good thing that this form was powerful without Chaos Energy. Link then pulled out his a bomb and strapped it to his arrow. He launched it, the bomb exploding on contact. Nazo laughed maniacally and charged again. If they thought he was merciless before, then no words could describe his viciousness at this point. He then went over to an asteroid, grabbed it, and threw it at the Earth. Being predictable, Dan and Sonic stopped it. Nazo appeared behind them and smashed them into it with another asteroid. Michael contacted Runo on her Bakupod.

"Runo! How is everything up there!? Tremors and tidal waves are wrecking the shoreline!"

"Let's see. Nazo has absorbed all of the negative energy of the Chaos Emeralds, he now has possession of the Silent Core, and uh… Ultra Sonic and Dan got sandwiched between two asteroids," she said.

"That's not good. Just… do your best and hurry!" he said, going off. Nazo then went for Samus, who used her Charge Beam to blind him. Dan melted a tunnel through the rock, and Sonic Spin Dashed through it. They returned and Drago healed Dan up. Link pulled out his Mirror Shield and Crossbow. He shot it, but Nazo fried the arrow with a Chaos Torrent. The red, black, and lavender sphere came for Link, who put the shield up defense. The ball was absorbed, and the shield flashed the three colors slowly. Nazo shot a black beam at him, so Link rolled out of the way.

Nazo was confused. Why didn't Link use his Mirror Shield? Was he that concerned it would crack? Nazo decided to blast Sonic with his black laser instead. The shining hedgehog did a Spin Dash, and it was a show of strength. They tried to push back the other. Finally, Sonic sidestepped and rammed Nazo, just bumping him. Nazo hit the spinning hedgehog. Sonic used Spring Jump and launched into the air. He then pulled out Calibur and tried to slash him. That didn't work either. The metal just clanged off of Nazo. Sonic jumped back before any more harm could've been done. Tigrerra roared as she charged, only to get an uppercut to the belly. Runo caught the Haos Bakugan in time.

Shun used Warp Dash Gust to go around Nazo, throwing glowing green Ability Cards like shuriken. Nazo charged another Chaos Torrent, but Link rolled in the way and let the shield absorb it again. The shield started flashing faster, and Nazo had no idea why the heck it was doing that. He did a super fast kick into Dammy's stomach, angering Masquerade. The blonde created another Shadow Sword and threw it at Nazo. The sword became liquid like and sunk into Nazo's body. However, before the strange vacuum on Nazo's stomach closed up, Runo threw a Haos Sphere at it. The Haos and Darkus moves mixed and exploded on Nazo's insides.

Blood sprayed everywhere, but Nazo's body healed in record time. He then shot a black and lavender beam at Samus, who charged her Phazon Beam and fired. The plasma laser disintegrated the beam in an instant. Nazo then did some repeated kicks against Shun, who fought back with his own. The two were incredibly fast. However, Nazo was quite a bit quicker. Not as fast as Sonic, but he was indeed swift. It was a good thing that Shun had ninja senses and dodged most of the kicks this time. He got out of the way for Komba and Link to throw bombs at him. They exploded, resulting in yet again nothing.

"Is this guy invincible or something!?" Dan yelled, shooting fireballs like a maniac. He delivered flaming kicks and streams of fire from his hands and feet, Avatar-style, but nothing occurred. He decided not to name any attacks but the ones he used. If he just focused, he could produce the moves. Marucho thrust his arm forward, making Nazo stop. Being in space meant one thing. The moon was always full in his line of sight. So, he thought his tower of water he'd bring from Earth would be huge. However, it wasn't. It was a huge tower of ice! Marucho threw the iceberg tower at Nazo.

It shattered, and then Marucho used the shattered ice to make a blizzard. Nazo was blinded for a bit, but eventually, Marucho sent the ice back down to Earth. Nazo charged a Chaos Torrent. Link smirked as he held his Mirror Shield out. Nazo shot the sphere, and the shield absorbed it. Link rushed forward with the rapidly flashing shield, and a multicolored beam shot out of it. Nazo was damaged by his own move. Lars Lion shot a Sagittarius Arrow, slightly damaging Nazo. Nazo shot them with a laser, but Link got in front. Nazo placed his other hand out, but Link slightly tweaked the direction his shield was, and the beam was redirected at Nazo.

"I'll destroy that shield!!!" Nazo growled. He ran at Link, but was hit in the leg with Samus' Freeze Ray. The frozen leg went numb, before his energy shattered the ice around it. Nazo was starting to find this battle annoying. However, he sensed that the feeling was mutual. He then charged at Chip, him being the smallest. However, his small stature let him evade easily. Sonic grabbed Nazo's ankle and threw him to Mars, zooming after him at light speed. The impact kicked up a small amount of dust, blinding them. Ultra Sonic zoomed around Nazo in a circle, creating afterimages that had increased in quantity. The dust added to the mix to make the real Sonic seem as translucent and undefined as the others.

Nazo fired continuously, to no avail. The Silent Core made him more powerful, but not faster. Nazo tried a few punches next. Sonic ran off and weaved through rocks, attempting to wear Nazo out. Sonic kicked back any moves to keep damage done to the red planet to a minimum. Drago had fixed up the moon. They just couldn't be grateful enough for that Infinity Core. Dan attempted to hit him a few times, but Nazo blocked each fist. Dan jumped back and let Runo mash him. Her wild punches and kicks combined with her temper made her quite the formidable opponent. Then, Link used his Bombchu and made it run over to Nazo, exploding in the process. He followed up with a Bombling.

Smirking, CF hopped in the Blue Falcon and charged at unbelievable speed. Nazo then stuck out his foot. The Blue Falcon hit it and stopped on a dime. Nazo then slammed it with his heel, busting the engine. He then walked up the hood and punched open the cockpit window. He lifted CF out of his seat, grappling his neck, and then punched him in the stomach. CF yelled in pain as the sheer force knocked him back farther than before. Pikachu tried shocking him, but the electricity bounced off in several directions.

"Man, does nothing affect Nazo but his own moves?!" Dan yelled in frustration. Nazo glowed purple and regained his strength. Sonic Spin Dashed into his stomach, creating sounds of clanking metal. CF returned and brought the Blue Falcon in for repairs. Drago glowed again and fixed it up. Nazo then grabbed Sonic by his quills and threw him around. Masquerade threw a Shadow Slash that was shattered in an instant. Nazo warped in front of him and shot him with a laser. The blonde received a lot wounds and got knocked into Dan with. Drago used the Infinity Core to fix him up.

Then, Nazo decided to test the limits of the Silent Core. He stuck out his palm and formed an energy sphere. The screech from it was enough to make the heroes deaf or a few seconds. This time, the sphere was not red or black, but lavender colored. The small sphere charged for the heroes, but Samus kicked it back. Nazo floated over it and threw another. This time, Drago received some massive damage. Dan growled as he shot out a few flares. Nazo slashed them all in half, so Runo pulled out an Ability Card.

"Ability Card, activate! Lightning Shield!" Tigrerra used the attack to weaken Nazo, making him more vulnerable. The being negated the attack and made some lavender rapid fire shots, turning Tigrerra back to her ball form. Then, Preyas used something he hadn't before. He changed his attribute to Ventus. He then charged after Nazo, so Dan pulled out a Pyrus and Ventus Co-Relation. Preyas then became Darkus, so Marucho played a Pyrus and Darkus.

Nazo decided it was about time to end it. He then jumped higher into space and formed two gigantic spheres that were the size of Angel Island. He then shoved them together, sending everyone to the atmosphere! Energy waves rippled through the very magnetic field around the planet. Once everyone looked up, they couldn't believe their eyes! The sphere was literally the size of Earth itself!!! The dark clouds covering the Earth were sucked into it, letting all of the humans witness this final attack. Speedy held Amy close while Cream was attached to his leg.

"You can do it, you guys!" Amy cheered. Speedy held her close, while Amy silently comforted Cream. Knuckles and the others looked at the sky. Dan used Nova Rocket to get out of it and planted his feet on an asteroid. Nazo then threw the gigantic sphere. Dan shot a Mega Fire Blast, but the black and purple sphere obliterated the weak flame.

"Yes, they can," Speedy agreed. He silently prayed for the Brawlers and Smashers. Dan's eyes widened. The sphere got closer, beginning to tear at the shore. Mountains were starting to shrink very slowly.

"Man, of all the times I wish I had a supernova flare or… HUH!!??!" Dan yelled. As soon as he said 'supernova flare', an orb of white fire formed in his hands. He held his hands out, focusing. He then shoved his arms forward, turning the orb into a gigantic laser of fire. The beam began to shove the sphere back. Nazo shot in a few more big spheres, fueling the sphere. The sphere got closer to Earth, and it started to shake. It was illuminated in a purple glow. Dan started squinting. "HaaaaaaaaAAAAAAHHHH!" As he yelled, his adrenaline fueled the beam. It grew wider and pushed it back. Mewtwo yelled and activated his aura. Samus and Lucario did the same. They formed a triangle around Dan.

"Take this! Shadow Storm!!!" The black beam hit dead center of the white laser. Lucario followed up with his Aura Storm, hitting the same spot. Samus shot a full-power Zero Laser. Dan's eyes opened, and the base of the laser was turned into a sphere that traveled up to the sphere. It shattered, and Nazo was painfully blasted with fire, darkness, aura, and plasma. The others saw this and took their chance. Marucho used Twin Aqua Dragons, Runo used Haos Sphere, Julie hit him with an asteroid, Shun shot him with wind from the atmosphere, and Masquerade used the darkness around them to form a Shadow Sword. Those moves hit dead on. CF zoomed up in the Blue Falcon, and Beast Ganon approached from the other side.

The two squashed him into the still going beam, and Chip pushed him further into it. Bowser turned into Giga Bowser and shot out a large Fire Breath. The flame roasted Nazo, while Link slashed away with his Triforce Slash attack. Marth helped with the slashing by using his Critical Hit. King Dedede's Waddle Dee Army delivered quite the few blows. Now he was being attacked by 16 people at once now! DK drummed some sense into him while R.O.B. diffused his particles. Pikachu used Volt Tackle to deliver some nasty shocks. Drago used Infinity Demon to really damage Nazo. Hydranoid's Terminal Trident and Exedra's Demon Wizard delivered major darkness damage.

Tiger Slash fused with Sagittarius Arrow. Triple Flare Blinder combined with Spellbinding Blast. Fortress used Pyro Bomb Blaze to bring the heat. The blinded and pained Nazo was burned beyond belief. He was in so much agony that none of the other attacks were felt. Solero then used his Phoenix Sol Flare to fry Nazo. Preyas used Giant Whirlpool and Juggernoid used Freeze Wall. The water and ice made a double blast of cold, making small explosions due to the mix of hot and cold. Reaper did some more cutting with Darkus Slash Frenzy. Yoshi did some flying kicks and roasted him by using Super Dragon. Kirby slammed the pot of boiling water on him, and when it bubbled him enough, Meta Knight slashed him in half along with the darkness.

Sirenoid used Destructive Lullaby while Skyress produced her Tornado Destruction Apocalypse. Mario then jumped high and fired a Mario Finale. Sonic then used a powerful Sonic Wind attack. Frosch then used Aqua Cyclone to sap some of Nazo's energy. Apollonir used Maximum Pyrus to power up Dan's Supernova Flare. Oberus joined in with Turmoil while Wayvern used Big Bang Blaze. Harpus used her Harpy's Rage to jab him viciously. Cycloid then delivered some nasty bruises with his Club Smash. Clayf then used Atomic Brave to further absorb power. Gorem then used his Boomerang Hammer to give him a double whammy. Chip helped with the pushing.

"Fusion Ability Card, activate!!" Dan yelled, managing to bump a card out to his face. "Dextra Attack!" Power launched from the other Bakugan to him, making the Infinity Demon attack much larger. Dan yelled, producing the large beam of fire that rivaled a supernova's heat. The flame engulfed Nazo. Nazo then managed to look over the flame to see something take shape beside Dan. The said brunette turned to see a translucent figure of an 11-year-old boy. He had a light olive green cap, square-rimmed goggles, a yellow shirt with what looked like a black dragon or something, forest green gloves, a red jacket, olive green pants that fell to the middle of his knees, and red and yellow shoes. His brown hair was blown back by the force of energy.

His same color eyes showed sheer determination. His hands were placed out to the flame, sending it more power. The kid seemed eerily familiar to him, as if he knew him. Dan blinked a few times, and it was gone. However it was only gone from Dan's line of sight. The aura now surrounded Dan, powering up his attack further. Masquerade blinked a few times as well.

"That aura looks familiar, but from where?" he asked. Nazo slowly started to lose energy. Then, Runo brought out some cards while Dammy threw her mallet at Nazo.

"Ability Card, activate! Haos and Darkus Co-Relation!" Tigrerra became more powered up and her Tiger Slash was boosted. Chan then threw a Pyrus and Subterra Co-Relation to Drago and another to Fortress. Komba then threw a Ventus and Pyrus Co-Relation to Drago and to Harpus. Basically, everyone exhausted their dual element cards on Drago and their respective Bakugan. Then, many other Ability Cards came into play.

"Fusion Ability Card, activate! Final Demolition!" Alice called. Hydranoid was powered up. Then, Chan threw in a Melt Flare to boost Drago's power. Klaus used Forcing Waves to help Drago out.

"Now, I'll play a Gate Card for Drago!" Sara yelled. "Gate Card, set!" She then threw a card under Drago. "Gate Card, open! Reinforcement!!" Drago's Gs increased big time. By now, Drago had to have had the largest amount of Gs ever recorded. Of course, it wasn't a brawl, so they couldn't be measured right now. Then, Runo used Lightning Shield to weaken Nazo's resistance to the multi-element attacks and the repeated rams and hits. How Dammy's mallet bounced off of Nazo and into Dammy's hand was a sheer mystery. Tails then joined in by blasting bullets from the hovering Cyclone. All the Brawlers could think was to thank Shun for the atmosphere. Otherwise, the attacks would've been extinguished, and no sound or fire could've been produced.

Meanwhile, Nazo was currently in unfathomable agony. It was a sheer wonder that the heat wasn't slowly turning his limbs and organs into ashes. They had to guess that Nazo did have a lot of energy. The aura around Dan was still fueling the Supernova Flare. Runo then decided to make a brave move. She formed not one, but used every ounce of energy she possessed to form TWO Haos Spheres!!! Drago glowed a bit and refueled her, so she then brought them together to form a much larger Haos Sphere. She threw the ball of light at Nazo, pushing him further into the beam of white fire. Shun then did a Ventus Gale to trap Nazo in a tornado so Chip, Ganondorf, and CF could stop ramming him.

"Thanks!" Chip said. He looked at the others. "Chocolate to enjoy the show?" he asked, pulling out chocolate bars.

"Sure! Thanks, Chip!" they said, munching it down.

"Exactly how many of those things do you have?" Runo asked, lying on the hood of the F-Zero vehicle.

"A bunch," Chip replied. Shun, Masquerade, and Marucho returned and began to snack. Julie was still bashing Nazo senseless with asteroids, and Dan was still bringing the heat. Right now, he wished more Bakugan were there to help. Using his free hand, Dan threw up a few Ability Cards.

"Ability Card, activate!" he yelled. "Burning Dragonia!!!" Drago then proceeded to blast a large stream of fire from his wings. "Ability Card, activate! Aero Dragon!!!" Drago then switched to a Ventus attack.

"Now, Dive Fleet!!" Drago called. He dived into fake water, still keeping Power of the Cores on Nazo. Then, he shot right behind him, doing an aqua ram. "Lunatic Burst!" Darkus energy flew out from his wings.

"Drago! Use Fire Grandam!!" Dan yelled, squinting to focus. Drago nodded and fired the Subterra Attack.

"Now, I'll add in my Flame Striver!" Drago yelled, producing a Haos move. "Now for Melting Burst!!!" The multiple attacks Drago was throwing at him amazed everyone. Sonic finally exhausted all of his rings, but continued to throw many Sonic Wind attacks. Soon, the elemental attacks turned in on each other, and Nazo was engulfed in a multicolored explosion.

"HaaaaaaaaAAAAAAHHHH!!!" Dan poured all of his energy into his laser to finish off the evil demonic creature.

"Just… who are you!!?" Nazo yelled to Dan.

"Who am I? I'm Daniel Kuso, the Pyrus Guardian!!" Dan yelled. However, the aura said something different. Was that kid and the aura connected?! The result of all of the moves was a large, white explosion. Everyone cheered, thinking they had won. They got back down to Earth.

"We did it!" Tails cheered. Suddenly, a purple and black shape appeared in the sky.

"What's that?" Shun asked. He looked at Dan, who was still glowing. "Dan!" Said teen smirked. They flew into the vortex for the final attack. Nazo found himself in a much darker area of space.

"I'm still alive? Those Emeralds and the Silent Core must be more useful than I thought! Drat. Guess I'll just have to try to destroy the Earth again! Huh? Who's there?" Everyone appeared in front of him. Drago glowed rainbow colors and shot a beam out. "What are you doing? Ugh!!" Nazo grunted, feeling massive energy leave him. He could only stare as Drago reclaimed the Silent Core. He turned back into Hyper Perfect Nazo. Dan watched as his other cards became Silent Pyrus and Infinite Pyrus, and his Infinity Demon turned into his Power of the Cores.

However, he kept the Dextra Attack card this time. Then Ultra Sonic appeared with the seven Super Emeralds. He moved his finger in like a 'come here' fashion, and the seven orbs of dark energy came out of Nazo and into the Super Emeralds, turning him into Perfect Nazo. The Emeralds got their color back, and Sonic absorbed the positive and negative energy of the Emeralds, causing him to shine a lot more. Sonic floated over and placed a palm on his head, turning him to normal.

"No! You can't be doing this!" Nazo exclaimed. Sonic shone even more. Everyone then fired their attacks again. Soon, Nazo began to disappear inside the beam, rapidly being demolished.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!" Nazo was sent into oblivion. The purple and black shape was replaced by a white explosion surrounded by a white ring of energy. People below were cheering their heads off as jumbotrons showed the picture and moving text displays proclaimed: _Monster Destroyed! Earth Saved!_ The Brawlers and Smashers found themselves back on Angel Island. Drago used the Infinity Core and repaired all of the damage done to Earth.

**Finally, it's the end of the Nazo saga! If you guys have any complaints about the Speedy x Amy pairing and those two not being with the group, I don't mind going back and redoing 20, 21, and 22 and their quotes in others. But I still won't do the ball chapter! Also, I'm making it to where all of Sonic's worlds are on another Earth, so you can forget about Mobius and the Freedom Fighters.**

**Also, I FOUND A NEW CARD LIST!!! If you are wondering what this means, there is this website that lists cards used in the anime. Well, I don't know when, but they added a second one that lists cards like Battle Sham and Infinity Dragonoid's attacks. So, the upgraded battles will have a lot more cards in them, and Drago is going to regain his Infinity Drago attacks, and also will gain a few of Naga's attacks like Silent Down and Bottom Zero, courtesy of the Silent Core.**

**This was supposed to be 11 pages long like most of my chapters, but I failed. Ah, well, it should still have enough action to please you all.**


	52. Save Smash World!

**A/N: Okay! No one complained about the changed pairing or the two not being there with the others? Awesome! So, with this, I'm probably going to decide on a pairing for Sonic. So, did you guys like the changed chapters? Let me know! But first, it's Review Response time!**

**Pikana: So, you're with me all the way, huh? Cool! Well, I did probably make the Sonamy pairing a bit mushy, but in my opinion, this one's a lot mushier. It did take a lot of thought and inspiration from other romance stories.**

**alxkend: It's fine that you didn't tell me. Anyway, I hope you like the Smash World Arc!**

**RYANTHELION: I'm glad that you like the fact that the Nazo Saga is over. Well, now to concentrate on this maybe one or two chapter arc.**

**xXShikigamiXx: Plot bunnies? Ha ha! That's a bit funny. Well, I hope you read the changed chapters.**

**CloneGirl: I see. What I mean by levels is that depending on what you say about a character, it shows how much you like him/her. And giving them a title shows a high level of fangirlism.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Well, I based all of the Pokemons' moves off of their movesets in Pokemon Platinum. Mewtwo learns Aura Sphere at Lv. 100, and cannot learn Counter by any means unless via Action Replay Codes, as the Move Tutors in the game are not able to teach Counter. Also, as you suggested before, the Combo Attacks will be introduced in Pokemon Panic. However, the WarioWare factor will not be included. You see, the worlds that are being saved are their homelands, so technically speaking, Diamond City would be in the Mushroom Kingdom in some far off area. So, since Wario's home is already saved, there is no need for Diamond City.**

**Natureking129(guest): So, you're saying that the heroes should come across a villain that is a conglomeration of evil versions of the heroes, and he's so strong that Dan's Supernova Flare attack would be like a tiny fireball when comparing power levels? Dude, that's a crazy idea! Well, if you want a strong one, just wait for a story that will happen once alxkend and I run out of BSCC ideas for a while.**

**Okay, I'd like to say that much later chapters, more than likely in the other stories, will show a lot more of Speedy's past. It's crazy!! **

The Super Emeralds reverted back, and the Chaos Emeralds fell off of the altar. Sonic placed them back on, but the island was stuck to the ground.

"Hm… strange. Ah, well, Knuckles probably won't mind his island on the ground," Dan said.

"No, I don't," said a voice. They turned to see Knuckles standing there, smirking.

"Knuckles!" Sonic cheered.

"You guys did an awesome job. Dan, nice work with that Supernova Flare!"

"Thanks!"

"Well, I'd better get back to Smash World. Since Tails left, I've working more shifts on Green Hill."

"That must suck," Runo said.

"Yeah, well-" Knuckles was interrupted by a large energy wave, causing minor earthquakes.

"Oh, no! Without the Emeralds, Vestroia's expansion has increased!" Drago yelled.

"And Smash World's in the middle!" Eggman yelled from the camera. "Guys! Hurry! Get to Station Square and get here NOW!!!" The others zoomed off with the Emeralds, Tails flying overhead with the Tornado. They soon found the dimensional stairway and ran into the shaking lab.

"Alright! We're here! So, how do we stop it?"

"Meet with Master Hand in the main hall. Sonic will take you there," the doctor said. Sonic grabbed their hands and zoomed off.

-Emerald Coast-

"Now what's happening?" Speedy wondered.

"Vestroia. There's nothing holding back its expansion now!" Amy said. "Guys, hurry!" she prayed.

"Cream, don't cry. The Brawlers and Smashers will save Earth. I promise," Speedy reassured. Cream nodded. "Go to your mom. Make sure she doesn't worry." Cream ran off to her house.

-Smash World-

Two gigantic hands appeared in front of the large group.

"Masta Hand. Crazy Hand," Mario said, nodding to each respectively.

"Smashers, Brawlers, come. We must discuss this with the remaining Smashers," Master Hand explained. They ran to a platform and saw the others. They were facing the others, waiting for a response. "Loyal Smashers. Through the years we have all faced many challenges. Now, we face our biggest threat: the end of many worlds. However, with the help of the Brawlers, we can stop this!" Everyone cheered for the motivational speech.

"Leave it to us Vestroian Guardians! We can fix this!" Dan said.

"Alas, you are mistaken," he sighed. Everyone turned to Master Hand. "Multiple worlds are being affected at once this time. By the time you save one, another may be destroyed. The only way is to clone your powers in case there are no clues as to how they can be saved. Dan. Runo. Marucho. Julie. Shun. Masquerade. Place your hands on that machine." The Guardians did as instructed. A loud humming sound occurred, and glowing cards slid out of the machine.

"Now, I'm going to split you Smashers here into teams to save each world. Here are the worlds that are being affected: Chozo Region, Hyrule, Pokemon World, Onett, Skyland, Corneria, Pikmin World, and Ice Mountain. These worlds are incredibly large. Take these wristwatches and teleporters. They will be of definite use to you."

"Now, for the teams!" Crazy Hand said excitedly. "Pokemon Trainer, Jigglypuff, and Pichu will save the Pokemon World. Fox, Falco, and Wolf will handle Corneria. Young Link, Zelda, and Toon Link will save Young Link's Hyrule. The Ice Climbers, Game and Watch, and Dr. Mario will take care of Ice Mountain. Ness, Lucas, and Snake will be in charge of Onett. The Chozo Region will be handled by Roy and Ike. Peach and Pit will save Skyland. Olimar and Luigi can take Pikmin World. Now, get a card and move, move, move!!" he hollered.

"YES, SIRS!!" they hollered. Each ran off to save the worlds.

"Once the worlds are saved, you six will fuse them to Smash World, as that is where they're headed. For now, you'll be the base of operations here, communicating with the Smashers and your folks," Master Hand explained. They nodded and took some seats in the control room. Multiple screens came up.

"Dan!" cheered one of them. It was Mrs. Kuso, happy as ever to see her son.

"Hey, Mom. How are things on Earth?"

"The similar weather patterns that occurred five years ago have returned. It's snowing right here," Mr. Kuso explained. "Also, waterspouts are coming from pyramids, and the sky is purple again!"

"Okay, Mom, we'll hurry," Dan said. "Opening all communication channels."

"Activating all audiovisual systems," Tails said. Pikachu looked at the panel in front of him.

"Hey, is this a holographic map?" he asked, looking at it.

"That's the Chozo Region!" Samus exclaimed.

"Okay, guys, here's how it's going to work. All of you will find the center of each world and throw the cards up. If they don't do anything, report and we'll investigate," Shun said through the mike.

"Got it!" they replied.

-Chozo Region-

"This place is giving me the creeps," Ike said, scanning all of the rock formations.

"Be thankful that we don't have to go through the caves and junk. We can just climb over to find the center," Roy replied. He grabbed a vine and climbed up onto the rocks. Strangely, it was flat all around, save for a few craters.

"Samus? Is this right? I thought you'd see part of the caves or something."

"No. The main parts of the region are underground. The craters have pillars that act like elevators and whatnot," Samus explained over the wristwatch. "Now, travel southwest of there and you'll find the center after about five miles. SO RUN!!" she finished. Scared by Samus' tone, they ran at unbelievable speed to the center.

-Smash World-

The weather abnormalities were now breaching Smash World's boundaries. A portal to Vestroia opened up in a large lake. Now there were two portals! Naga and Metal were out in space, snickering. Since Nazo was gone, they could try and stop the heroes themselves! Gathering their Shadow Bakugan, they charged through to Smash World.

-Vestroia-

The large universe was beginning to crumble apart. Bakugan were chickens running amok. Nobilion was busy rounding them up to calm them down.

-Chozo Region-

"Hey! It's starting to flood from underneath! It's like geysers!" Ike said. They were just a few feet from the center, so they hurried there and threw the card. It went into the air, yet nothing occurred.

"Hey, what gives!?" Roy yelled.

"Guys, I think I know what's going on. There are four terminals in all cardinal directions of the area. Maybe you need to activate them," Sara explained.

"The terminals run on plasma. You need to find four plasma pods in the ruins. Head for a crater and jump, and then find the power room. The hallways lead to the terminals," Marucho explained. Shrugging, they ran into a crater and jumped. Deciding the power room would be in the center, they went for the north door. Then, they had to travel through eastern hallways. A few strange bees showed up, but they got roasted to bits by Ike. Then once they reached the power room, a rumbling occurred above them. The ceiling fell, revealing black creatures.

"What the heck are those?!" the two swordsmen yelled. Dr. Michael pulled up a visual for the ones in Smash World.

"Crud! Looks like Naga's taking it back into his hands again!"

"So, those are Shadow Bakugan?!" Roy yelled over the roaring they made.

"Yep!" Runo yelled. Ike and Roy pulled out their flaming swords and charged at the evil creatures.

"Great Aether!!" Ike yelled. He did multiple flaming slashes and destroyed five of them. Roy charged with his own sword of flames and slashed straight through a Shadow Dragonoid. He then turned and did an uppercut to a Shadow Warius. Ike grabbed a plasma pod and made a run for it. Roy landed on the ground and grabbed another and headed for another terminal. Soon, they found strange towers. Roy ran up to the terminal, slashing away behind him. He then threw a sphere at the switch. However, a red laser sliced it in half. It revealed other lasers.

"Crap! This has a security system!" he grumbled. He then noticed another switch on the top of the machine. He grabbed another small sphere, and he threw it with great accuracy. At that time, a Shadow Ratteloid pounded in, and Roy easily dodged it, sending the creature to get sliced into bits by the lasers. The pieces shattered into little sparkles of black energy.

-Pikmin World-

Luigi and Olimar were going crazy, trying to avoid the paranoid gigantic bugs and whatnot. Luigi used a Super Jump Punch and knocked out a giant frog-like creature. Olimar pulled out a red Pikmin and it breathed fire on an incoming beetle. Luigi's determination hid and outweighed his fear, making the job a lot easier.

"You-a doin' okay, Olimar?" he asked as they continued to the center. The short pilot nodded as they got into a cave.

"Be careful, Luigi," Olimar said. "These creatures are a lot more dangerous in the dark." Luigi pulled out a flashlight and they continued running. "That's a good flashlight."

"No-a problem. Eet's-a good I have no-a use for dis vacuum cleaner," Luigi replied.

"Why?"

"Dis only works on-a ghosts." They continued walking, when they heard strange noises. Something rubbed against the wall, and there was… squeaking? Olimar ran toward the noise. "Shouldn't we run away from-a strange noises?" Luigi called as he ran after the man. They kept running until Olimar stopped. He ran his hand along the wall and slightly squeezed it.

"It's warm…" Olimar said. "Flashlight please." Luigi tossed it to him and Olimar turned it on. Countless dots shimmered from the light, and the strange noises were louder.

"IT'S A HORDE OF RAT-A CREATURES!!!!" Luigi screamed as he high-tailed it out of there, Olimar right on his heels. Okay, that was a major detour. They ran up the cave and over the hill, nearing the center. Soon, they reached the area, ragged and out of breath. Olimar threw the card, but it was knocked back by a black claw. They looked up to see a horde of Shadow Bakugan and Darkus Bakugan. "Oh, man! Naga's bringing-a da big guns!" Luigi said, looking up at the sky.

-Corneria-

Three Arwings glided over the ocean. Fox, Falco, and Wolf flew through the skies of the rebuilt planet, searching for the center of the planet.

"So, where is the center of the planet?" Wolf asked. He hadn't been to Corneria before.

"Okay, first, we need to cut through a populated area. It's where we faced that robot in the area behind the waterfall, if I'm not mistaken," Fox said.

"Yeah, these things don't come with a GPS. They should!" Falco growled.

"Let's just try it. If the card bounces back, we're in the wrong place!" Wolf suggested. Fox nodded as they flew towards the city. As they entered the border, the sight was horrible. Once again, buildings were collapsing, gates were burned, and ground was busted.

"This is horrible…" Falco muttered.

"Fox, there's something on your tail!" Wolf said. Fox nodded and pulled the brakes, making a Shadow Garganoid and Shadow Skyress go ahead of him. Fox then shot some lasers at the darn things, disintegrating them. They kept flying, and Falco make a bank to the right. Then, a Shadow Laserman began to fire. Wolf and Fox both did a barrel roll to avoid the lasers. As they neared to exit, Falco flew in front of them, having some Shadow Bakugan on his tail.

"I got bogeys on my tail!" he said. Fox began to fire as Falco circled. "Something's wrong with the G-Diffuser!" Fox then destroyed three of them, and Falco did a final circle. "I could really use some help here, you two!" Wolf lazily shot some lasers, helping Fox with the final two. "That was close!"

"I thought you would've learned from last time," Fox chuckled. Grumbling, Falco kept flying, thankful he still had fuel left. They came across some rock arches and began to fly through them. Soon, they reached the coast and headed through the waterfall. They flew over rockets and avoided falling bombs, and they had to make some _very _sharp turns to avoid some crazy Shadow Bakugan. Soon, they started flying over a clear lake. As they flew, a certain black and white dragon started shooting energy attacks.

"Naga!" Wolf growled, shooting lasers. They dodged some fireballs and black attacks as they continued to fly to the source.

**Can the other Smashers save their worlds? Find out in the next chapter!**

**On a side note, does anyone have ideas for a pairing for Sonic? If so, tell me. It could be anyone you want, even an OC. Man, it's hard to make Speedy's past like that OC in that story I read given the circumstances. I mean that story had a female Tails and the OC was her brother. And the pairings were Amy/OC and Sonic/Tails. I'm so confused! What to do?**

**1. Make the OC the older brother of Sonic's love interest? That one would be the closest to the story. If that's the case she will appear before Chapter 19. If it's an OC, she will have the same history as Tails in the story.**

**2. Work my way around the whole thing and give Sonic a love interest?**

**I'm not leaving the option for making it like the story. If you guys convinced me to make Tails a girl, I know what would happen. Kazo the Hedgehog would say: HULK SMASH CHAOHACKER AND INTERNET PEOPLE!!! I really need your opinion. I know, I know, I'm making too many changes to this story. It's just that, for some reason, this story and the additives, meaning my own characters, are not meeting my expectations. So yes, I'm going to change Dammy's and Sara's past.**


	53. Save Smash World! Part 2!

**A/N: I can't believe this story is so close to nearing the end! Just maybe five more chapters tops!**

**alxkend: I'm glad you like Wolf taking action! **

**xXShikigamiXx: Yes, I also see Naga as a confused soul. However, you must approach it from this angle. Naga's mind was corrupted by the Silent Core, so in a sense, he was not thinking. **

**Pikana: I'm not bummed about the story overall, just Speedy and Sara. Thanks for the compliments!**

**RYANTHELIONJ17: Thank you!**

**Natureking129(guest): I don't think I'll use Majora in this. Also, a clone of Amy is not the best idea. Naga is already basically an Ultimate Bakugan, so that plan won't work. I don't know if the final battle will downgrade the Nazo Saga. I'm not that good. This is only my third story! (Smash Life and Game Talk were deleted for sucky review averages. My bro let me delete his stupid story known as Sonic Squad) However, with your highly optimistic views, you may think it's that good.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: So, you're saying I could give Tails an older sister, perhaps? That could work as Sonic's love interest. I'm not sure just yet. There are so many options to work with. The Olympic Arc could happen, just not in this story. If I did, my mother would throw a fit for extending the story. I might change Sonic's Sol Emerald Form if I can come up with a better name.**

**OutcastClankzilla (): So, you want Sonic and Amy back together? Okay, well, that makes two people. Kazo wants the same thing.**

**Okay, so only a few people have ideas that I can work with, but the others are basically saying to make my own decisions. Well, then, I'll have to brainstorm through my mental ideas. I will not follow the same storyline as the story with the character I based my character from. If I did that, Tails would be a girl, and my friend Kazo the Hedgehog would say: HULK SMASH CHAOHACKER!!!**

**As for Sara, I have changed her first name into one that can be shortened as a nickname. She will appear near the end of the story as an inexperienced brawler with the resentful Zorano. Dammy has Solero. So, everyone, be prepared to soon meet Nicole Lindsay. **

**Now, onto the rest of the Smash World Arc!**

-Ice Mountain-

"Popo! Catch!" Dr. Mario hollered, throwing a sturdy ice pick. The blue clad kid caught the ice pick and began to climb. He threw the line up to advance. Nana was right on his heels. Game & Watch easily advanced up the mountain by using his trampoline. Dr. Mario used a hypodermic needle made of steel with high carbon levels as a mini ice pick. Well, it also had a solvent to flatten the ice to make a stairway.

"Dr. Mario, you had better be sure that won't dissolve the rest of our home!" Nana warned.

"It-a won't. I'm a doctor, after all." They continued to climb up the icy rock, until a mechanical chuckle interrupted them.

-Pokemon World-

"Pichu! Pichu pi!" Pichu chanted as they strolled along. They were currently in the Kanto Region, hoping to find clues or at least the center of the area. Red had Charizard out and was on his back, doing some high-altitude flying. Jigglypuff was right beside Pichu, looking around the trees and looking for the place closest to the center. Red pulled out his map of their world.

"Okay, guys, we need to head for Viridian City and ask for the boat to leave to Two Island. That's the exact center of our world," Red called to the short ones below. Pichu nodded before nearly dodging a fire attack. Pikachu looked up to see Moltres, Lugia, Articuno, and Zapdos above them. However, they were different. They saw Shadow Bakugan surrounded them, beginning to swirl around them, changing their colors.

Soon, Lugia looked like his colors were reversed. Moltres' body was a deep black, burning with purple flames. Zapdos was surrounded by small storm clouds, and his body was now gray, crackling with red lightning. Articuno's elegant tail became ragged and sharp, a blizzard was howling around the area. All of them had one thing in common. The whites of their eyes were red.

"Oh, crap! Guys, we gotta problem!" Red yelled over his wristband. Dan pulled up a visual to see the four birds. "Those Shadow Bakugan somehow merged with them and made them mutate into the dreaded Shadow Pokemon!"

"The what?" Runo asked.

"I know about them," Pikachu said. "Red told me that in this place called the Orre Region, some evil syndicate tried to take it over by creating an army of merciless Pokémon by closing the door to their hearts."

"But… that's so evil!" Alice said, covering her mouth. Shun walked over to her and pulled her close. Master Hand growled, although you couldn't see it. It was quite audible, though.

"What do you mean by 'the door to their hearts'?" Dan asked.

"It's just a spiritual term," Pikachu said. "You know the saying 'open up your heart'?"

"Oh, okay, I get it now."

"But, why do they look like… that?" Shun asked.

"I'll take it from here, Pikachu," Red said. "When they started up the second time, the new boss created what was said to be a Pokemon that could never be purified. It was called XD-001. See Lugia? That was the one."

"No way. XD-001 was Lugia?!" Pikachu said.

"Yes. Well, it was _a_ Lugia," Red said. "There are at least nine of those puppies out there." Pikachu nodded.

"Okay, guys, try and make them faint from exhaustion, and the hold on them should be broken," Masquerade said to the three.

"Charizard, use Flamethrower on Articuno!"

"Grah!!" Lugia gave a mighty cry before using Shadow Blast, sending dark waves hurling at Charizard. The flames were extinguished by the darkness. Zapdos then used Shadow Bolt to shock Charizard. Red returned the Fire/Flying Pokemon to his Poké Ball, and then he threw Squirtle out. The tiny turtle used its speed to dodge incoming attacks and used Surf to reach and soak the phoenix. Moltres squawked in pain before using a Shadow Fire on Pichu. The tiny mouse countered with his Thunderbolt. However, Pikachu was weakened by the attack by a bit. He couldn't wait until he evolved into a Pikachu. Jigglypuff placed earmuffs on her allies and jumped into the air. She took in a long breath and began to sing, trying her hardest to lull them to sleep.

-Hyrule-

The two other Links and Zelda were currently in Kokiri Forest. Young Link's best friend Saria ran up to him.

"Link! I'm so glad you're here! There are some black-"

"Shadow Bakugan. This world is beginning to merge with the others! Guys, let's move!" Young Link said, interrupting her. "Saria, don't worry. You'll be safe."

"Don't tell me you're going to pull out the Master Sword!" Saria said.

"No, I don't think that will be necessary," Zelda said.

"Phew! That's good. I'll go tell the others not to worry. Oh, and the Great Deku Tree wants to give you something."

"He's…"

"Of course! When our Princess Zelda sent you back, our Ganondorf was erased from time. Now go!" Saria barked. Young Link nodded and the three took off to the Great Deku Tree. Once they got there, he began to explain that he would need the Master Sword to unlock the clues, but found a way to alter time only around him. He sent down two orbs of light and the Kokiri Emerald. With that, they ran off. Saria frowned when she saw their Spiritual Stone go under his shield, but then noticed the orbs of light.

"Okay, guys, let's do this!" Toon Link said. Young Link squeezed one orb of light and was enveloped in a blue glow. Soon, Young Link aged seven years in the blink of an eye.

"Wow! Incredible!" Saria said. Link2 ran around and got the following: Deku Sticks, Deku Nuts, the Fairy Slingshot with pellets, and the Kokiri Sword.

"We're off!" Zelda proclaimed. The three ran off into Hyrule Field. Once there, they ran to the marketplace where Link2 bought a Hylian Shield. They then entered the castle and reached their Princess Zelda.

"Link! Toon Link! Zelda! I'm so glad you're here! Please tell me you have a way to stop those creatures and this awful weather!" Indeed, the weather systems were off kilter. It was now blowing fierce winds around.

"I'm going to need the Ocarina of Time!" Link said.

"Huh? Oh, okay!" Zelda tossed him the blue ocarina. Impa came and transported them to the snowy Hyrule Field. They ran over to Lon Lon Ranch.

"H-Hey, fairy boy!" Malon said, her teeth chattering.

"Hello, Malon," Link said. He played Epona's Song on his ocarina, and she walked over to him. He gave Epona the second ball of light, and in a flash, she was seven years older. Malon blinked a few times. "I think I need a saddle." He had an evident smirk on his face.

-Onett-

The city was in sweltering heat. Ness and Lucas were panting while Snake calmly walked in his camo.

"Hurry up, soldiers!" he barked.

"Shut up, Snake!" Ness panted. Lucas was using Ness' shoulder as a crutch. They soon reached Jeff's house. They explained the situation to him, so he started to scan the world to find the center. He immediately locked the coordinates and they took off, but not before getting an all weather suit strapped on. They stepped outside and felt amazingly cool despite the blazing sun. The sky began to turn purple as they ran.

"Incoming Shadow Bakugan!" Lucas yelled. Snake fired a few missiles to fry four of the Shadow Bakugan.

"PK Flash!" Ness yelled.

"PK Freeze!" Lucas yelled. The blast of fire and light destroyed another amount of Shadow Bakugan. Ness and Lucas nodded before focusing their energy to activate their Final Smashes.

"PK… STARSTOOOORM!!!" they yelled, summoning blazing blue stars to fall to the earth like meteors.

-Skyland-

"I don't think that any Shadow Bakugan will show up here," Pit said.

"I doubt that. Don't forget that Naga can copy just about any Bakugan. Even a Shadow Storm Skyress or Shadow Reaper or the like," Peach warned.

"Peach, for a princess, you aren't very optimistic," Pit said with a sweatdrop. Peach turned to him with an annoyed look.

"After being kidnapped by Bowser, kidnapped by Bowser Jr., almost being forced to marry that slob, kidnapped by evil astronauts, possessed by a shadow demon, and turned into a trophy, how could I always be optimistic?!" Peach yelled. Pit recoiled out of fear.

"G-Geez, sor-sorry! Don't go all Shadow Queen on me!" Pit said in fear. A mad Princess Peach Toadstool was a scary thing. She then calmed and they continued on their trek. Soon, they reached what appeared to be a scared altar. "There, standing under the northern square of the skylight, that is the center. Peach nodded and threw the card up, but a Shadow Garganoid bit it and threw it away.

"Pit! Hold them off! I'll grab the card!" Pit nodded and held his ground, having to slash his way through a few Shadow Centipoids. He then shot a few arrows while doing a front flip and then rammed a few with his elbow. Peach swatted a few with her tennis racket and golf club. She grabbed the card and threw it into the sky, breaking the glass. Soon, the edginess vanished, and everything seemed peaceful again. The Shadow Bakugan continued to onslaught.

-Ice Mountain-

"Okay, Metal! You're on our turf, so prepare to fight! And this time, only a few Shadow Bakugan! Bring anymore, and we'll scrap you harder than if you don't!" Popo proclaimed boldly. Metal Sonic crossed his arms, sizing them up before he unleashed a barrage of missiles. Dr. Mario shot exploding vitamins at them while Nana and Popo began to freeze his metal can.

"You think those annoyances will stop me? Ha! Take this!" Metal shot out electricity and shocked the crap out of the three. Game & Watch retaliated by using his powerful hammer and fire extinguisher. Metal was knocked to the top of the mountain. They ran up there as quickly as they could, using the occasional bridges around to help them up. Soon, they reached the metal monster and began to mercilessly attack.

"Take this, you creep!" Nana yelled, swinging her hammer.

"Yeah, no one harms our mountain!!" Popo shouted, freezing him. They then joined hands and did a spinning attack. Dr. Mario decided to ram him rather harshly. Metal growled and launched an attack. Then Dr. Mario threw the card into the sky.

"NO!! You insolent fools! This crisis is far from over!" Metal said, using Chaos Control to warp from the scene. He was unfortunately right. Only when the cores were returned and fixed would this stop.

-Chozo Region-

Roy and Ike had just activated two of the terminals and were returning to grab two more plasma pods. They looked up and saw no sign of any major villains.

"Guys, we don't see Naga or Metal Sonic. Where are they? Something isn't right," Roy said.

"Wolf, Fox, and Falco are fighting Naga right now," Dan said, monitoring the battle.

"We-a just made Metal-a Sonic leave! He might-a be going somewhere else, so hurry up!" Dr. Mario said. Sure enough, the metallic blue hedgehog appeared above them. Ike had his sword at a threatening length. Roy built up some flames in his sword, ready to weld. However, Metal looked different somehow.

"Hey, is it just me, or have you changed?"

"I have copied all of your data and the power of chaos. So yes, I have boosted my form beyond Neo Metal Sonic. Now, let me show you my power!" Metal began to blast electricity from his palms. Ike tried to deflect them, but wound up getting shocked anyway. Roy charged, dodging attacks and slashes the whole time. Lunging, he used a flaming strike on Metal's arm. Ike used a sidestep dodge to perform an Aether on the robot. They then jumped into the air to perform a double flame slash. Metal seemed to be more resilient, however.

"Just how much data have you copied?"

"Do you really want to know?" he asked menacingly, brandishing steel claws at his mortal enemies. Ike and Roy nodded, ready for the worst. "I have copied the data of every Smasher, every Bakugan, and every anthro in existence."

"Even Netherwar?" Dan asked from the wristwatch.

"What? You failed to notice me in the Doom Dimension?"

"We saw ya, we just weren't sure! You probably already gave that ability to Naga, huh?!" Runo yelled. Roy and Ike covered their ears.

"Sadly, I cannot transfer my abilities. Don't worry, it won't matter. We will still defeat you and take the cores back." Metal then charged at the two swordsmen, but Roy threw an extra plasma pod at the thing. Metal started to shot out, so he warped away. They picked up the final two plasma pods and took off, reaching the unguarded terminals. They placed them in, and the energy stabilized the planet. Their job was done.

-Pikmin World-

Olimar and Luigi just reached the top of the mountain and threw the card. Their world was fixed, so they could now concentrate on rounding up the bugs running amok. Luigi used a few green fireballs while Olimar had a few Pikmin shoot out fire.

"How many of those Shadow Bakugan has Naga created, anyway?!" Olimar yelled.

"I-a don't know, but keep attacking-a!" Luigi responded. Soon, day slowly turned to night, and they teleported to Smash World to avoid the more active bugs.

-Hyrule-

Link2 had already gathered all of his items and was currently riding Epona with Zelda in the back and Toon Link on his lap. He had everything he needed and was now on his way to find any clues to stop the rogue weather.

"Hey, Toony, you find anything?" Link2 asked. Toon Link was looking through his telescope.

"No, not yet! Wait! I see something at the top of Death Mountain! It… looks like some red orb!" Toon Link said.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go!!" Zelda said. They ran up through Kakariko Village and got off of the large horse. They ran through the passageways and ran up to the top of the mountain. Toon Link used his grappling hook to get up there and pick up the orb.

"This definitely has energy like the cores. Should I break it?" he asked.

"Sure!" Toon Link swung his Skull Hammer, resulting in nothing. Link2 and Zelda got an idea. The three shot out their Light Arrows and blasted the orb, sending positive and negative energy throughout the region. Their part was complete.

-Onett-

"Come on! Just how long is going to take?!" Snake yelled, blasting away at the massive army. Lucas and Ness both did a PK Flash, followed by a mix of PK Freeze and PK Fire.

"I don't know, but I hope this finishes quickly!!" Lucas yelled back.

"Guys! I found it! Let's hurry!" Ness hollered. The three ran to the intersection of their city. They found the center of their world and threw the card of energy into the air. The sky returned to normal.

-Corneria-

Naga was still trying to obliterate the three jets circling around him and his army. He tried a few attacks, but nothing seemed to destroy them. Then, a strange thing occurred.

-Smash World-

"GAAAHHH!!!" Drago suddenly yelled. Dan was in a panic.

"Drago! What's wrong?!"

"The cores!!! Gah!! They've increased in power! I can't… control!!!" Suddenly, the two spheres launched themselves out of his body. Joe instinctively threw Wayvern into the Infinity Core. The Silent Core launched itself into a portal, eventually hitting Naga and knocking him into Vestroia.

-Corneria-

"That's not good. Naga might end up reabsorbing that thing!" Wolf growled. Somehow, the separation of the cores obliterated the aurora around the planet.

**So, can Pichu, Red, and Jigglypuff save their home? Find out next chapter! Also, I regret to inform you that after this arc, none of the other Smashers will ever be involved in the story. However, in the sequel, two characters who make appearances in SSBB will become Smashers!**

**For anyone who doesn't know, I have entered One Crystal Rose's contest if you want to R&R. Please do! Man, I hope I get my OCs straightened out soon so I can submit the seventh chapter of my contest entry. **

**Oh, by the way, I've decided to scrap all of the other changes like the battles. Now, I'm sure you are wondering why. Well, I've decided that there are so many changes to do, and then there is the fact that some things aren't tying together. For instance, making an appearance for Wayvern is hard when she's a hybrid. What parts are white? What parts are red? What other colors should she have? Then, we have the whole core thing. Then we have the fact of the whole move thing where Sonic got Spin Dash first instead of Homing Attack, and that should have been corrected long ago. **

**However, I might, **_**might**_** create a Bakugan Smashers: Revised Edition later on. Either that, or just end up changing the missing elements properly within a year or so. Also, the whole evolving thing just isn't cutting it. I mean, sure, it was fun, but the attacks are just too different and strong to relate to the other attacks. I'm sorry if all of these changes are displeasing you. It's just that whenever I do something that works, something else seems to happen that makes it useless and incomplete!**

**Also, I shall be making, at some point in life, my Bakugan Smashers: Original Edition. This is how the story was going to turn out before alxkend convinced me to create the sequels. It will be noticeably shorter.**

**There is one change I **_**will**_** still do. The weather anomalies aren't supposed to occur on Earth yet, so that has been changed. Also, I've decided to get rid of the portal above Ever Peak. The next few chapters will be sorta like episodes 39 and 41-45 with a few twists.**


	54. From Smash World to Vestroia!

**A/N: Sorry for the wait! My computer was out. Okay, this chapter will regress to where only Dan, Runo, Marucho, Julie, and Shun will be involved for the next arc. Now it's time for Review Response!!**

**alxkend: Yes, you are absolutely right! Behold the soon to come wrath of Silent Naga!**

**brave kid: Thanks, dude! I'm glad you like it!**

**xXShikigamiXx: Just wait and see. So, you've played XD: Gale of Darkness, too? Nice. I have purified every Shadow Pokemon.**

**RYANTHELIONJ17: I'm sure it will!**

**Pikana: Man, the Shadow Pokemon are a hit!! I can't wait to finish this story.**

**OutcastClankzilla (): Okay! Okay! I heard ya the first time! I'm asking for ideas, not threats! You can't yell at me to revert the pairing! It's all based on majority rule. If mostly everyone wants Sonic and Amy back, I'll do that. If they say I should change Speedy, I will. If they want other pairings, I'll probably do that as well. Also, if you're **_**so**_** curious about how I changed it, read 19-22.**

**EM98: Sorry, but I have no knowledge of LOTR.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: You are close, man, very close. One of them is indeed an Assist Trophy. Regarding Pokemon Panic, I am having the readers vote for which pairings they want, so I have no clue if it will contain Pokéshipping. I'm kinda hoping myself that most people vote for Altoshipping, as well, but the chips can land anywhere, so to speak. I might have the Bakupods get a Pokémon upgrade and vice versa, but I'm not sure just yet. I still have a good while to get my thoughts straightened out.**

**Okay, while my computer was out, I have formed an idea. Here goes: Clarence looks a lot like Tails. Sonic met her about a month after he met Tails. Living at an orphanage since she was two, she's been teased a lot about having two tails. Upon greeting, Sonic calls her 'kid', so she believes that he thinks she's a guy. She tells him she is bullied and hopes someone will end her. **

**Disagreeing with her bleak thoughts, he offers to be her friends. She gives him her hated name, but Sonic says he isn't creative with nicknames. Upon mentioning Tails, she plays along and begs for a similar name. So, Sonic calls 'him' Tailz. She meets her brother and her real name is revealed in Chapter 19. I just need help with their full names.**

**I know the names of the characters I based them off of, but I will not use them unless you say I should. Otherwise, give me your ideas. If I keep Speedy as is, and the pairing is changed back to Sonic x Amy, I'll do what PEJP Bengtzone suggested and give Tails an older sister, and she'll be Speedy's love interest.**

**I have realized a few mistakes. First off, Knowa Lion is actually Nobilion, but no worries. I have fixed that. Secondly, Dark Super Sonic does not exist. His form is merely called Dark Sonic. So, his second form should be called Dark Super Sonic. Finally, PEJP Bengtzone, you were right. Sonic's sword is called Caliburn, not Calibur. I have an idea for that, though.**

**Now onto the story and away from my babbling!**

-Pokemon World-

Shadow Moltres, Zapdos, Articuno, and Lugia were relentlessly attacking. Shadow Articuno used Shadow Chill to freeze Pichu solid. Red sent Charizard back out and used a Potion to heal his wounds. He then used an Ice Heal to melt the ice on Pichu. Jigglypuff was rather steamed that her lullaby failed to soothe the large birds and the sea beast.

She launched herself into the air to try a second time. This time, Shadow Articuno succumbed to the power and fell asleep. Charizard made it faint with a Flamethrower. The Shadow Bakugan emerged, and Pichu destroyed them. Within minutes, the magnificent blue bird awoke and gave a mighty cry before flying off. Red then turned his attention to see the Shadow Bakugan continuing to pour out of the portal.

"I'm starting to get really annoyed, here!" Red hollered.

"Piiiii… chuuuuuuu!!!!" Pichu let out a loud yell as he unleashed a Thundershock attack, weakening Moltres. He then collapsed from exhaustion due to being electrocuted by his own attack. Jigglypuff leaped into the air to deliver some rapid punches and kicks to Zapdos. Squirtle was exchanged out to face Lugia. The Tiny Turtle Pokémon used Surf to reach the Flying/Psychic being. He spun around and slammed Lugia's head. Red then got an idea.

"Good job! Go, Charizard!" Red called, summoning the dragon. He bent down so Red could climb onto his neck. "Now, Fly!" Charizard took off into the sky and they neared the portal. Red extended his arm, wielding the card as if it was a blade. Actually, it _was_ a blade. The glowing rectangle made contact with the portal, and it started to disperse. Now, now other Shadow Bakugan could emerge. "Pichu, Jigglypuff! You two take care of the Shadow Bakugan! I'll handle the other three Shadow Pokémon!"

After reaching solid ground, Red switched out Ivysaur. The Grass type Pokémon used Vine Whip to grab a hold of Shadow Lugia and Shadow Zapdos, smashing them into the ground. Then, a Smash Ball appeared above Ivysaur, who broke it open with his Bullet Seed. Charizard and Squirtle appeared beside Ivysaur and attacked.

Fire Blast, Solarbeam, and Hydro Pump were shot out simultaneously. Moltres and Lugia were taken down by the combo attack. The Shadow Bakugan emerged and joined the others, so Pichu and Jigglypuff made quick work of them. The two awoke and summoned Articuno to help them.

Lugia shook his head to Red, Pichu, and Jigglypuff, signaling that it was their turn now. They attacked the rest of the Shadow Bakugan, and Shadow Zapdos. Zapdos tried to shock them as they were flying, making seem like the legendary battle between them years ago. Ice Beams and Flamethrowers mixed with Shadow Skies and Aeroblasts.

"Jiggly Jigglypuff!"

"Pichu Pi!"

"Squirtle Squirt!"

"Go, you three!" The three heroes cheered them on, clapping as Zapdos feel to the ground and released the Shadow Bakugan. The black creatures slowly disappeared. "Lugia! Could you take us to Two Island?" Lugia nodded and landed on the ground, lowering his neck so they could climb on.

Once they reached the island, Red threw the card into the sky. Red pressed the teleporter, and in a flash of light, they found themselves in Smash World. A second flash occurred, returning Sonic's world to its original position. Dan motioned for the Smashers to follow, but they didn't.

"Dan, we need to stay here and defend our own ground. Go. Protect your world. We'll come back for the final battle against Naga and Metal," Sonic explained. "Naga will be tougher once he absorbs the Silent Core, and he'll be going after Wayvern again, so keep her safe."

"You got it, Sonic. Take care!" The Bakugan Battle Brawlers left down the dimensional stairway, and it disappeared when they got on the cement sidewalk. They were somehow back in Wardington.

"I think we should get home, too," Chan said. "Marucho, could you call Kato and have him take us home? We need to defend our own areas." Marucho nodded.

"I understand completely. You all take care." Marucho bowed to them in respect and good wishes. He dialed Kato on his Bakupod, and the old pilot picked up Chan, Klaus, Julio, Komba, Dammy, and Daisy. He took off into the sky. Masquerade turned another way.

"I'm going to keep Grandfather company. See ya, guys!"

"Well, my mom's probably worried. I'd better go," Christopher explained.

"I should go check on my dad as well. I don't want him blowing a gasket," Shiori added. Soon, it was only the seven original Bakugan Battle Brawlers left. A snowflake fell from the sky.

"It looks like the weather patterns are picking up," Shun muttered. They walked to Dan's house as it showed up on the news.

"News from all over the world! The strange weather phenomena that occurred five years ago have picked up again. It seems that the world known as Vestroia is starting to collide with Earth again! Does this mean Naga's coming back?" Pictures of Wardington, Hawaii, and Egypt were shown on the screen.

"If this is the case, Vestroia has probably reformed into the hybrid worlds. I hope Centorrior, Druman, Hairadee, and Tayghen haven't been revived," Drago said.

"I just hope Tricloid and Rabeeter have the sense to not flirt with me if they're back!" Dan groaned, burying his face in his palm as he remembered their flirting and how Julie almost became scary. Runo's face was covered in a fierce blush.

"You know what bugs me?" Joe began. Everyone turned to him. "How do Naga and Metal Sonic know where we are? I know he doesn't have an inside man."

"I have sensed it as well. It seems as a last resort, Naga covered someone with an energy that all Bakugan could sense, much like some form of radar," Drago explained. Apollonir and Lars Lion rolled off of their tamers' shoulders.

"Dan, we soldiers must go to Vestroia to assist Nobilion," Lars Lion explained. With a nod from the two teens, the two soldiers vanished. Alice pulled out her Warp Card and ran her finger along the hard rectangle.

"So, it looks like this is the calm before the storm, isn't it?" Mrs. Kuso asked, sitting on the couch beside her son. The brunette slowly nodded.

-Vestroia-

Naga was back in the center of the now separated Vestroia, quickly absorbing the Silent Core. Metal stood outside the sphere of negative energy.

"Master, are you okay?" Metal Sonic asked.

"Yes, I am fine, Metal. Hm… It seems my sister has the Infinity Core once again. This shall be easier than I thought!" Naga snickered, his mind falling under darker corruption. He then sent a wave of energy throughout the dimension.

-Earth-

"Wayvern, are you okay?" Joe asked. She started to waver a bit.

"It's… Naga… he's using the Silent Core again!" Wayvern choked. Dan growled, punching his open palm. Drago waddled over to her to reassure the White One. Joe gently petted her head with his index finger to help ease the pain. Wayvern eventually calmed. Marucho turned to Preyas.

"So, Preyas, what are we… huh? What's that?" Marucho asked, noticing a second sphere. His eyes glanced between Preyas, who looked a little different. "Uh… guys? WE have a slight problem on our hands." Dan and the others glanced at Preyas before turning to their own Bakugan. Tigrerra, Gorem, Skyress, and Reaper had changed.

"Don't tell me that the energy devolved our Bakugan!!" Dan groaned. He ran to his computer and typed in everyone's chat number, making their screens pop up. They all ran over to their computers when they noticed Dan's face. "Guys, we have a problem."

"What is it, Dan?" Masquerade asked.

"Tigrerra, Preyas, Gorem, Skyress, and Reaper have just devolved from Naga using the Silent Core. You'd better check your Bakugan." Chan, Julio, Komba, Klaus, Billy, and Christopher all glanced down at their guardians.

"Oh, man! Ours devolved, too! This isn't good! They won't be as powerful anymore!" Christopher whined.

"Oh, well. It isn't too much of a problem," Alice replied, walking up behind Dan. "After all, they have more Ability Cards in this state."

"Yeah, 'cept for Marucho. The whole time he only has one card, be it Blue Stealth or Giant Whirlpool," Julio mocked the Aquos Brawler who he thought might have been in another room complaining.

"Actually, for Marucho, it's better! He can use those attribute combo cards without being partnered with someone," Dan said back, smirking. The Haos Brawler buried his faced on his crossed arms, pouting.

"Boy, for a bodybuilder, you sure are a baby! Chan chortled. Julio shot back up so quickly that he ripped his black shirt in the process.

"Oh, man! I'm blinded from the ugliness!" Dan laughed, teasingly covering his eyes.

"Shut up, brat!" Julio yelled, though it only sounded like a whisper due to Drago lowering the volume.

"Oops, my mistake," Drago muttered sarcastically. Julio fumed as Dan increased the volume to normal. The bald muscleman stormed off to grab another shirt out of his closet while Tentaclear remained still on the desk.

(Sorry, guys, but the more I think about it, the more I think it's best that only Drago and Hydranoid have Ultimate Bakugan forms. So, until a show that shows them evolving airs, this is how they will stay.)

"Okay, so, now that we know, I'll just get off here. See ya!" Dan finished, shutting off his computers. He and Alice ran back down to the others.

"Hm… man, what are we going to do, now?" Julie wondered.

"You should call your folks," Mr. Kuso said, holding a pudding cup as he sat down on the couch between his wife and his son.

"That's a great idea! I'll let them know Daisy's on her way home for a while!" Julie dialed a number on her Bakupod and started chatting. Alice sat beside Shun.

"Masquerade should've pulled out the duct tape on her," Shun muttered. Alice giggled at his remark.

-Sonic's World-

Sonic currently sat on the couch in his apartment, watching the rather boring news channel. Nothing good was on. See how only Calibur was the only one to talk to, as boring as he was, Sonic pulled the mystic sword on of his sheath.

"What is it, Sonic?"

"I'm bored, so I thought we could chat for a while," Sonic replied nonchalantly. Calibur seemed to nod.

"Very well, I have been rather bored myself. So, what do you want to talk about?"

"First, a question. Why did you call yourself Caliburn when I met you?"

"Heh, even a twit like you could have figured out what I really was and what I was capable of if I told you my true name of Calibur," he explained in a rather mocking tone.

"Gee, thanks for the info," Sonic muttered sarcastically.

-Earth-

"Man, I don't even feel like brawling! That's never happened before!" Dan suddenly yelled. Runo scoffed at her boyfriend's behavior.

"Well, go run around outside! Practice your stupid powers! Just shut up!" Runo hollered, fuming.

"Make me!" Dan retorted.

"Do you really want me to make you?" Runo asked, lifting an amused eyebrow.

"Yeah!"

"Man, he's toast," Julie said.

"That kid is dead," Shun added, reading his 15th newspaper. The girl lunged at the Pyrus Brawler, who countered with a sidestep. Dan then somehow successfully performed a roll dodge and used a flaming fist to char a small end of her pigtail.

"DAN!!!" Runo yelled. Mrs. and Mr. Kuso sighed dramatically. The rolling around eventually caused a small book to fall out and land in Runo's arms. "Hey, what's this? Oh! It's a secret journal entry! Hm… I wonder. Should I read this out loud?" Runo asked. Everyone chorused yes, but Dan yelled no.

She would have ignored him, but the break in his voice got everyone's attention. Drago turned to see his friend shaking in fear and tears trickling down his cheeks.

"Dan?" Shun and Mrs. Kuso asked, very worried.

"R-Runo, you c-can read that, but d-do _not_ read anything b-but the introductory p-paragraph out loud! Please!!" Dan was practically begging.

"O-Okay, Dan," Runo said, giving him a quick nod. Runo opened to the first page. "Okay, ahem… says here that this is from five years ago, during the whole Bakugan mess." Dan sat down on the floor by the doorway, his arms resting on his curled up knees as his bangs shadowed his eyes.

"_Okay, by now, everyone knows about the dreaded brawler known as Masquerade. However, only I know that the blonde has performed another crime. What I'm about to write down is not for anyone's eyes but my own, as badly as I wish I will forget this recent incident. Now, although this happened to me, it will be in third person view like a regular story. Okay, here goes."_

"Huh, some of the words in here are smudged by water. Was Dan crying when he wrote this?"

"Runo, stop asking questions and just read it!" Shun said, exasperated. Runo nodded and silently began to read as Alice wondered what she did to Dan as Masquerade. The blunette's finger slowly traced the phrases and paragraphs. Immediately, her finger stopped as her eyes widened. Her pace became slower as her body began to tremble.

Everyone could see her mouth slightly opening, as if she was silently whimpering. The others looked on, curious and fearful. Runo could barely keep her eyes open as tears began to form.

'Is that entry that horrible? What did he do to Dan? What happened?' Mr. Kuso thought. Runo's whimpering slowly became louder. Marucho could see her throat rising, as if she was choking back vomit. Runo suddenly jerked her right hand to the spine of the book while she covered her mouth with her left.

Alice looked at her little sister figure, her eyes becoming misty. The tomboy glanced over to see Dan's eyes still hid, the rest of his face soaked in tears. As soon as she traced the last line of the last page, she dropped the book and ran over to cling to Dan, sobbing on his shoulder.

Mrs. Kuso shakily lifted the book and placed it on the coffee table in front of them. They leaned in close as they read at the same pace, so not to read ahead of the other.

"Say what?" Shun asked, his eyes narrowing. Reading on slowly became difficult. Mrs. Kuso had to choke back her dignity to continue. Alice, of course, was taking this the hardest. Mr. Kuso flinched away at the very last word, running to the restroom. Mrs. Kuso sat there, her heart in sheer disarray. Drago turned to his sobbing friend.

"Daniel…" Drago said solemnly. Mrs. Kuso glanced over and ran to her child, joining the embrace.

"My baby, my baby…" she cried, pulling him closer. Dan continued to tremble as the memory rushed into his head. Alice walked over to the Pyrus Brawler, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Dan, I'm so sorry. I really didn't know…" It was the only thing she could say.

"I-I know… I-It wasn't y-your fault," Dan sobbed.

"How the heck can you be so… optimistic all the time?" Shun asked, feeling tears attach to his eyelashes.

"N-Not… sure…" Alice's fist flexed with each second, and with each flex of her hand, the Bakugan seemed to shake toward her. She glanced at them, and she knew what was going on.

"It's me, isn't it? I'm the one who Naga's been using to find you…" Alice's eyes spilled out her tears of confusion, even when she was comforted by her loving boyfriend. "Why does everything bad involve me?!" she whined, pounding the ninja's chest.

"It's okay, Alice. It's okay…" Shun whispered. She gently eased out of his grasp, pulling out her Warp Card.

"Guys, I need to be alone for a while…" With that, Alice vanished into thin air. Everyone shared a sad before going over to Dan, who was still trembling horribly. Alice warped back to her grandfather's mansion and barreled through the door. Dr. Michael called for her, but she continued running until she entered her room and collapsed on her bedspread. A certain Darkus Guardian heard the noise and walked in.

"Alice? What's wrong?" Masquerade asked. Alice shook her head. "It'll be okay. Whatever happened, I'm here for ya." Alice smiled gratefully.

"Thanks." Masquerade gently pulled her up into a sitting position and into a hug. "Bro…" Alice pulled away.

"Yeah, sis? What is it?"

"Did you… have any other bad memories besides the brawling ones?"

"No. The only things I did were searching for tough players, handing out those stupid Doom Cards and battling really though people. There's only one other memory, but it's fuzzy. Why?"

"F-Follow me," Alice led him to the computer and opened a certain file.

"Why are you pulling up that gag story?"

"Just… wait…" Alice began to delete some lines and add other, painfully remembering the lines in Dan's secret entry. Once done, she stood up and left. "This actually happened five years ago…" Masquerade slightly fearfully walked over to the computer and began to read. Alice went into the living room and sipped at a mug of hot cocoa.

She and Michael sat in silence for at least five minutes or so before screaming swears of shock echoed off the walls. Michael stood up to see Masquerade standing in the doorway. He was breathing rather heavily, his blonde hair was a complete mess, his eyes were wide, his pupils dilated to pinprick size, making him look like a deer caught in headlights.

"A-Alice, you had better be k-kidding!" Masquerade stuttered. Alice sadly shook her head.

"No, it's in a secret book that he has," Alice said. Masquerade walked over and sat on the couch. He placed a hand to his forehead, as if the images he was remembering were giving his a migraine. Back at the house, the sad mood was interrupted by a loud noise. The Brawlers turned to the TV.

"Breaking news! Another portal has opened up in the middle of the ocean, more than likely leading to Vestroia! What does this mean? Is Naga close to coming back? Let's hope the children of this world have enough Bakugan to stop them once they begin pouring through!"

"Dan? What's our next move?" Shun asked the Pyrus Guardian stared at the screen. He turned to the others, wiping his tears off and putting that look of pure determination on.

"We're off to Vestroia again, guys," Dan answered. Everyone nodded. "Mom, don't worry about supplies. We won't be gone longer than two days in our world, promise. Joe, watch over Wayvern. Contact us if the Bakugan become to much to handle."

"Gotcha, Dan!"

"This time, let's hit him before he comes back to Earth!"

"Right!" Runo, Marucho, Julie, and Shun took off to inform their parents. Within four hours, Kato picked them up and they took off for Vestroia. Once over the portal, Runo seemed upset that Alice was once again not there. However, she shook her head to clear her thoughts. This was definitely more important. The cargo door opened. They glanced out to see the familiar portal, and jumped out into free fall as they joined hands.

"WOOHOO!!!"

**So, how will this journey into Vestroia turn out? Stay tuned, readers! Just a short notice, I have become a beta, and I am currently helping PyrusBlaikeRyder with his story, Bakumon. Plus, I have kicked back up into helping Kazo, but updates may be faster. They always are during school, weird, huh?**


	55. Rise of the Shadow Hybrids

**A/N: It seems that most are curious as to what was in the secret entry! Well, I won't tell. Figure it out for yourselves. And also, IS ANYONE EVEN READING THIS BOLD STUFF?!! SERIOUSLY! I'M STUCK ON THIS OC PROBLEM, AND NO ONE IS COMMENTING ON ANY IDEAS I PROPOSE!!! Guys, when I ask for help, please give it! Okay, now I guess I'll answer your reviews.**

**xXShikigamiXx: Yep, Dan's one lucky teen to have such good friends! You seem to have the closest idea to what was in that book! Oh, and thanks for the warm welcome back!**

**alxkend: That's an interesting quote! The answer to your question is yes.**

**brave kid: Glad to be back!**

**RYANTHELIONJ17: Sorry, but you just have to guess about the book.**

**galactic commander neptune: Same as Ryanthelion, you have to make a hypothesis. **

**Natureking129(guest) (): So, you're going to get an account on this website? Awesome! Anyway, the message you coded to me had a few misspelled words, but it doesn't take a genius to know what it meant. Man, you are evil! I'm just joking, by the way.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: No need to worry! **

**super64 (Now known as supersayinmario): Nice to hear from you again! But you spelled 'saiyan' wrong. Nice you see you have an account!**

**mr. nice: I don't see what needs improved on, other than Chapters 15, 16, 17, 18, plus my update time.**

**EM98: Well, my friend Kazo apparently has a lot of knowledge of LOTR. So, I might put your idea into a story. However, it might be a while.**

**Okay, on to the story!**

The familiar tunnel of flashing rainbow colors appeared before our heroes. They basically yelled and screamed as they fall, their Bakugan returning to normal. Two swirls appeared before them, blue electricity surging through each, eradicating the time-space continuum between them.

"Whoa! Is that what I think it is?" Dan asked.

"Are those the Aquos and Ventus worlds?" Drago asked. Suddenly, they reached the other side. They panicked as they fell toward a floating sheet of ice.

"Dan!" Drago said, catching him.

"Runo!" Tigrerra lunged to save Runo.

"Shun!" Shun did a backflip onto the head of the green phoenix.

"I've got you, Julie!" Gorem said deeply, catching her in his palm.

"You saved my life again, Gorem!" Julie said, relieved.

"I'll save you this time, Marucho!" Preyas yelped, trying to save him. Once again, Angelo swooped in and retrieved the blonde. "Huh? AAAHHH!!" Preyas was the first to fall through the ice, followed by Tigrerra and Gorem. Most of them ended up behind some ice arch, while Drago and the kids were inside of it. "All clear, guys! And I don't sense any negative energy!"

"Huh? Are you sure?" Dan asked, his head poking out from behind a pile of snow.

"Well, I suppose we should start moving," Runo said.

"I agree, Runo," Drago added as they stepped out. They stepped out into the open, giving their opinions about the sudden ride.

"It seems that Vestroia has returned to being the three hybrid worlds," Gorem said, looking around.

"You are definitely right, Gorem!" Tigrerra said.

"I can feel the power of the Aquos attribute," Angelo added.

"Ventus power is definitely here!" Skyress pitched in.

"Why is this happening, anyway?" Marucho asked.

"It seems that the effect of the Silent Core being back in the center has turned Vestroia's expansion back into a collapse," Drago answered.

"Say what!? You mean we… we have to go through all this again?!" Dan yelled.

"I'm afraid so. Due to the changes, however, I'm unsure if our friends' dimensions are in danger at the moment. However, I know for certain that Vestroia and Earth are definitely threatened."

"Aw man! This so bites! I mean, what world's next? Subterra/Haos, Subterra/Darkus, Pyrus/Darkus, Pyrus/ Subterra, Haos/Pyrus, Haos/Darkus?! Augh!!"

"Hey! Just like before, Dan! No need to get frustrated!" Julie chirped.

"Yeah! Cool down! You want me to make you slide into an ice wall?" Runo asked, somehow non-threateningly. She poked his arm, making Dan fall and slide anyway. The others sweatdropped before jumping after him. Dan headed face-first into a cliff. The Bakugan reached them as Dan slowly got up.

"Are you okay, Dan?" Drago asked.

"Yeah, that seemed painful!" Preyas put in.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" Dan turned to face the blunette.

"I'm okay, Runo." Drago noticed the once again frozen Bakugan.

"Guys, we have a problem!" Everyone turned to Drago before seeing the Aquos and Ventus Bakugan trapped in the ice.

"Oh, man! This is not cool!" Julie said.

"Are you guys thinking what I am?" Shun asked.

"Yeah, I think so!" Dan replied.

"Naga! We have to hurry to the portal!" Marucho growled.

"But where _is_ the portal!?" Preyas whined.

"I guess you're right…" the blonde said flatly.

"My guess is that it should be not too far. After all, this somewhat new world isn't very large," Skyress cawed.

"Skyress is right," Drago began, "After all, the power of the core is slowly weakening."

"So, we just follow the same path as before?" Shun asked.

"Correct, Shun. The portal might lead to the center, but it might lead to another dimension. Regardless, we must proceed!"

"Right!" Angelo agreed with the phoenix. Dan clutched his head.

"Yeah, but how do we know it's in the same place?!"

"Look! There's another aurora, that way!" Gorem proclaimed.

"Wow! It's still as beautiful as the last one!" Gorem's battler exclaimed.

"Yeah, it is!" The Haos Brawler agreed.

"So, does this mean that another magnetic field is open?"

"I'd say so. That's what happened last time," Shun answered the genius. The Bakugan agreed 100%.

"Let's go guys! Before any evil Bakugan show up!" Dan ordered.

"Yeah!"

"Ten hut! Move out!" Preyas said, acting like a general. They trekked down the icy path until they reached the portal.

"Hey! There it is, guys!" Marucho yelled, pointing to the portal.

"What are we waiting for!? Let's go!" Dan yelled. Suddenly, a small bit of splashing and a chuckle interrupted him. He turned to see a young girl, standing on the water. A black dress with a green collar and designs on the black ended in long sleeves. Red eyes lay on a face of obsidian skin, adorned with a green jewel on the forehead. "Hey, is that…?"

"Hello, there, humans…" she began.

"Tayghen! I knew you'd probably be here!" Runo said.

"What are you doing here?" Dan yelled.

"Isn't it obvious?" the different looking human shape antenna said.

"Obvious? Are you trying to get me mad?"

"Sorry, kid, but we don't have the time to deal with you and Hairadee!" Preyas retorted. "Come on, kids, let's go!"

"Oh no, you don't! Not until I show you my surprise!" A huge wall of water shot up, letting Tayghen reveal her form. The fish part of Tayghen had black and blue scales and red eyes. The anatomy was all correct.

"What the?!" Dan yelled, cringing.

"I am now Shadow Tayghen! Now, I have more power than before!" Suddenly, Hairadee appeared beside her. He looked different as well. His tentacles had black designs instead of yellow, his golden armor became black, his eyes changed from bright red to blood crimson, and his claws were longer. Basically, all of his yellow and gold parts were black.

"Naga infused us with energy left over from the Shadow Bakugan you destroyed. Now, we're going to use this power to make sure you don't reach our leader."

"I can't believe you guys! Do you ever just die!!?" Dan yelled.

"Forget them, Dan!" Preyas said, his frills sticking out. "A change in color scheme doesn't prove anything!"

"You can't get past us so easily!" Shadow Hairadee yelled. "Air Attack!" He suddenly rammed into Drago.

"You fool! You never learn!"

"Drago!" Dan yelled. Skyress cawed, charging at him.

"Oh, no you don't! Shadow Blow Away!!" A green tunnel of wind that crackled with black lightning sent Skyress not into, but through a tough iceberg.

"He is indeed stronger! His moves are boosted with shadow!!" Skyress grunted.

"My turn! Shadow Aquos Cyclone!" Shadow Tayghen yelled, blasting them with water that had black electricity. It soaked and hurt the six brawlers, sending them tumbling into the ocean.

"No! Hang on, Marucho!" Preyas yelled, jumping in.

"Runo!" Tigrerra followed suit. The kids yelled as they continued to sink, too exhausted to really do anything at the moment. Dan turned to see Tayghen charging a second time.

He winced, but Tigrerra once again saved the day.

"Huh?" It was major déjà vu, but no one was complaining.

"Preyas, now! Do it now!"

"That's a big ten four, good buddy! Aquos Bubble!" The beam of bubbles formed a giant shield around them.

"Thanks, you guys!" Dan said after panting in relief. It floated up and out of the water. It popped, letting them land on the water a second time.

"Boy, are you guys ever out of shape!" Preyas said as the others sighed, gulping in deep breaths.

"Thanks, Preyas," Marucho said, trying to sit back up.

"The signal is weakening, you guys!" Gorem said, getting their attention.

"Aw, snap! Come on, guys! Let's hurry up and beat them! I don't wanna be stuck!"

"Dan, how?! There's no time!" Marucho retorted.

"Marucho, it's time to use the same maneuver as last time. Lure Tayghen underwater," Shun said to the blonde. Marucho cocked his head to the side, almost asking why, but then realized that although they could use both attributes, they seemed to be the slightest bit weaker in the other area.

"Are you sure that'll work, Shun?"

"Yes. Skyress, I'm sure you know what to do."

"Indeed, Shun."

"Alright! Let's do this!" Marucho said.

"With your Aquos and Ventus powers, that'll be a snap!" Preyas cheered on.

"Excellent plan, Shun!" Angelo complimented.

"This just might work this time!" said Gorem.

"Let's get this show on the road, Skyress."

"It shall be done!" Skyress cawed, going into the air.

"Gate Card, set!" Shun threw a black card that became a green rectangle before disappearing on the water's surface. Hairadee was still using Air Attack on Drago, but Skyress butted in.

"I have you now, Shadow Hairadee!" Skyress growled.

"Mind your own business!" Hairadee shouted back.

"Gate Card, set!" Marucho yelled, throwing a card that turned into a blue rectangle once deep in the water. "Okay, let's do this!" Marucho said.

"Okay, buddy!" Preyas said, making a fist.

"Let us finish this!" Angelo said. The three dove into the water, where Tigrerra was still holding Tayghen off. After a bit of taunting, they got her attention, allowing Tigrerra to go to the surface.

"Gate Card, open! Triple Battle!" Marucho called. A barrier shot up between Preyas and Tayghen.

"Not this again!"

"Okay, Angelo! Time to morph!"

"Gotcha!" Angelo did an underwater backflip, becoming his devil-like brother.

"Aquos Preyas Diablo! Oh, man, this is gonna be good! Thanks, kid!" Diablo said.

"Okay, let's do this for old time's sake! I haven't done this in a while!" Preyas said, suddenly becoming Darkus. "Hah hah! Feast your eyes! Preyas the Magnificent has arrived!"

"Ability, activate! Pyrus and Darkus Diagonal Relation!" Diablo was engulfed in a red aura.

"I can feel the power surge! Hiya!" Diablo swam at full speed toward the giant fish.

"Those fools. I can take them both out!"

"Ability, activate! Water Refrain!"

"What?! Again!?" Tayghen yelled, unable to attack.

"Now it's my turn!" Marucho activated his Aquos Medallion. "Waterbending Bomb!" A bubble flew at supersonic speed toward Shadow Tayghen.

"Incoming!" Diablo yelled. Tayghen screamed as they suddenly made contact.

-Shore-

Skyress and Shadow Hairadee were in a midair chase, until Skyress turned around to face the nuisance chasing her.

"What now, Skyress? Ready to give up?"

"Far from it! Now, Shun!"

"Gate Card, open! Energy Merge!" Some of Hairadee's strength was sapped out and sent to the green phoenix. Skyress used her strength to ram Hairadee into the water.

"Alright! You did it!" Dan cheered. Tayghen was lurched out of the water.

"Awesome! Now, let's make sure Hairadee _stays_ underwater!" Runo said. Preyas and Diablo resurfaced.

"This is too easy!"

"Kay, kids, keep your guard up!" Diablo said as they dove back in.

"Alright, Tayghen! What do you think now?" Dan mocked.

"Yeah! You and Hairadee are so going down!" Julie chimed in.

"You honestly think that will work?" Tayghen shouted, suddenly going into the air. "I'm not done yet, and I know Hairadee can't be kept underwater!"

"No way!" Runo gasped. "She shouldn't be strong enough for that-"

"Shadow Blow Away!" The gust went towards Skyress, but Shun managed to absorb some of it with his Ventus Medallion.

"Dang! Her powers are strong!" Shun shouted in surprise.

"But, how much power does she have, anyway?" Julie asked.

"Shadow Aquos Bow Jet!" Blue beams of energy sparking with black lightning hit Tigrerra, sending her back by quite a bit.

"If this was a basic battle, I could tell, but I can't!" Dan said.

"Hang on. I get it now! The shadow energy not only powers their attack, but their overall strength, allowing them to use their shadow hybrid attacks whenever they want!" Shun put in.

"Is that possible?" Drago asked.

"I thought that the Shadow Bakugan were weaker than this!" Gorem added.

"Oh, no! Marucho may not stand a chance!" Tigrerra said when she recovered.

"Let's just focus on not letting her go back down into the water!" Shun interrupted.

-Water-

"Guys! We have to stop him, and quick! Try and keep him under as long as possible!"

"Shadow Hairadee may be strong, but he's not that fast underwater! We can keep him under!" Diablo answered Marucho. Hairadee managed to open his eyes.

"I'm afraid that your scheme has become impossible!" he straightened himself as his tentacles twirled. "Shadow Dive Mirage!"

"Oh, crud! His shadow boosted attacks shouldn't be that powerful!" Marucho yelled.

"Oh, man, we're done for!" Preyas panicked. Marucho channeled his own vortex of water, but the black energy dissipated it, trapping them in the water. He skyrocketed out of it and used Shadow Freezing Wave to trap them. Marucho hadn't mastered the ability to control ice yet, so they ended up being frozen in.

"Hah! That was pure child's play!" Tayghen bragged as Dan shouted for Marucho.

"Who's next?" Hairadee laughed.

"Why you cretin!" Drago yelled, going after him.

"Fool! Shadow Aquos Bow Jet!" Blue beams and black lightning shot through Drago's defenses, sending him into the ground.

"This isn't… right!" Drago grunted, trying to get up. "No Bakugan should have that kind of power!"

"This is all my fault again!" Shun growled. "Stupid shadow powers!"

"Oh, no!" Julie panicked. "The wormhole's closing, you guys!" The other's gasped.

"Ventus!" Shun shouted. He channeled a tower of wind around Drago, Dan, Tigrerra, Runo, Julie, and Gorem. "You guys go on! I'll take care of things here!"

"Are you sure, Shun?" Dan asked, receiving a nod. The six entered the wormhole, going to the next dimension. The aurora and portal disappeared, and Shun faced the two Bakugan.

"Let's get this over with, Tayghen!"

"Heh heh heh, what do you think, Hairadee? Up to face this kid again?"

"Well our shadow attacks are far superior to his wind medallion attacks, but what the heck, I could use a laugh!"

"I'll make you eat those words!" Shun shouted, throwing a card. The three crossed the border of the card, letting the ninja activate it. "Gate Card, open! Forcement Wind!" Skyress drained their Ventus power, gaining strength.

"Thanks, Shun! I'm powered up and ready for battle!" She rammed the both of them, knocking the villains through the air.

"That's it! No more fooling around!"

"You'll never win!"

"Hah! Just wait and see!" Shun replied to the two.

"For what?" Hairadee growled.

"Skyress! Ready? Get that weak spot!" Skyress nodded, aiming for the ice where Marucho was.

"I've had all I can take of you two!" Hairadee roared.

"Storm Stinger!" Shun ordered. Skyress shot green shards at the ice, freeing the three. Preyas caught Marucho in the air, and they landed beside Shun. Marucho shivered a bit.

"Man, talk about déjà vu!" Marucho muttered, his teeth chattering.

"You okay, buddy?" Shun asked.

"I-I'm good!" Marucho said, quivering from the cold.

"Oh, please! A repeat doesn't prove anything!"

"For your info, I never go it alone anymore! So, Marucho, you ready?"

"Yeah! Diablo, we're going to need Angelo for this one!"

"Aw, man! I was so excited!" Angelo returned to battle.

"Aquos Angelo, here to protect! What is your wish, Marucho?" The flying lizard joined Skyress.

"Haos and Ventus Diagonal Relation, engage! Now, Skyress and Angelo are jacked up to the limit!"

"Oh! Oh goodness!" Angelo said, glowing gold.

"I can feel the surge!" Skyress said before cawing. Marucho used a tower of water to get up onto her neck.

"Let's do this, guys! Ready?"

"Oh, yeah! Let's start with a combination attack!" Angelo replied. The two did a double whammy on the two Shadow Bakugan.

"Now, time for my other attack! I'll use Water Wall and Freeze Frame!" Marucho used his Aquos powers to create a wall of ice that froze and damaged the two.

"Marucho! Phase two!"

"You got it, Shun! Preyas, you're up!"

"I'm ready, Marucho! Attribute change! Darkus!" He turned to a black and purple scheme. "Am I cool or am I cool?" He landed on Skyress' back. "Hey! I'm ready for my close up!

"Diablo, you're next!"

"Geez, what's with all the changes! I'm flipping so much that I'm getting dizzy!" Diablo said when he appeared.

"Darkus and Pyrus Diagonal Relation, activate! Preyas and Diablo power boost!"

"Shall we, Diablo!"

"You know me! I'm always ready!" The two glowing Bakugan flew toward Tayghen and Hairadee, who had wide eyes. Preyas kneed Tayghen in the head while Diablo kicked Hairadee's stomach, bock attacks producing shockwaves.

"Whoa, where did that come from?!" Tayghen yelled.

"Incredible!" Hairadee said in shock and slight anger.

"Shun! Your turn!"

"You got it! Gust of Wind Blow! Destruction Meteor Storm!" Skyress began to glow with a warm light that began to melt the tips of icecaps. "Now, Ventus! By the power of the Ventus Guardian!"

"Aquos! By the power of the Aquos Guardian!"

"Ventus/Aquos! Combination Blast! Hurricane Surge!" Shun and Marucho yelled. A large hurricane and storm surge met with the light. The two yelled as they were engulfed by the light. When it died down, the two were gone.

"WE WON!!" Marucho cheered. Preyas and Diablo fell onto the ice.

"Well, that was fun. Can we go again?" Preyas asked, slightly out of it.

"Yeah, ma, one more time, please?" Diablo added.

"Thanks, Shun!" Marucho said when Skyress landed and let him off.

"No sweat." They firmly grasped each other's hands as a sign of pure teamwork.

"All right!"

"Now, let's get out of here," Shun said with a smirk.

"Uh huh!" Rays of light shone through the clouds as Tayghen and Hairadee groaned and pouted about their loss.

"I can't believe we lost to them again!" Tayghen whined.

"Don't worry, we'll get 'em later!"

**Finally!! Okay, I still need to change Chapters 15, 16, 17, and 18. I'll get on that, and then I'll work on Chapter 57. **

**Also, I need to redo the Vestroia Arc and Medallion thing. I forgot about how Vestroia should've split into six worlds when Drago got the cores.**

**Now, before you leave, I have a mini-story to tell you all. Ya see, I'm kinda overstuffed with things. Kazo, my best friend, has to leave FanFiction. I won't say why, though. So, I have to type his final or next to final chapters for his two stories. Next, I'm now **_**trying**_** to help a friend of mine with her story, which is one of the practically overdone and yet crazily popular Sonic: High School stories. On top of that, I have Alpha Blast to work on. **

**However, there is a problem I have. You see, I offered to beta this, no offence to the author, story with many spelling and grammar issues called ****bakugan the vampire nights****. It was declined, but I told this one person who reviewed the same story that I might make a similar version of it with much better grammar and spelling. However, I'm uncertain, due to that the story that I offered to beta contains lemons in it. There's a poll on my profile if you want to give me your opinions.**

**Sorry for rambling on about my life. Okay guys, give me some thoughts on my character problem, and tell me if I should type a better version of the story listed above!**

**Here are the choices for the character problem again:**

**1) Keep as is.**

**2) Change Speedy into fox, who is a brother of Tails' female doppelganger (OC)**

**3) Change back to Sonic x Amy**

**4) Change back to Sonic x Amy, give Tails an older sister, Fox OC x Speedy.**

**5) Make a different OC, Amy's boyfriend is OC's brother.**

**6) Tails' older sister is Sonic's love interest, then it's Amy x Speedy.**


	56. Copy Battle! Shadow Hybrids vs Orginals

**A/N: Hey, people! The Alphabet Contest is finally over, so I'm back on track! Well, I'll respond to reviews first, and then I'll announce the votes so far. Anyway, time for Review Response.**

**galactic commander neptune: So… I take it you hate Sonic x Amy?**

**PEJP Bengtzone: I expected you would choose those two. But why would you want me to delete the review replies involving the shows you suggested for BSCC? That could take a lot of searching.**

**EM98: I bet it is.**

**brave kid: Yeah, I've checked out your e-mails. So, there are rumors of another season? Interesting!**

**alxkend: Already planned that!**

**Dragonickmaster (): Gotcha.**

**xXShikigamiXx: Don't worry. I'm not under a lot of stress about it.**

**Pikana: I'm glad you like the battles so far!**

**Natureking129(Guest) (): I think your penname is good enough. Funny mini-story, by the way! As for your idea about Bowser and Ganondorf becoming bad guys again, I have a similar idea. Have you ever heard of **_**Super Mario Bros. Z**_**? Now, imagine a similar but not exact storyline where that story is turned into a FanFiction for BSCC.**

**One last thing. I think I made Tricloid a little more childish and Rabeeter a bit more girly. Enjoy!**

Two sinister figures stood as they loomed over their domain, eagerly awaiting their next challenge. It was a rather strange place. A tall cave with level ceilings and rocky floors was dotted with tall stone pillars and shorter plateaus. Light poured in from circular holes that reached the surface unknown.

"Are you ready for those humans?" one asked in a deep yet feminine voice.

"Yeah! This'll be fun!" the other cackled.

"So, how are we going to treat them?"

"I think we'll take them out one at a time. Now, let's wait for out guests!" The two figures chuckled as they gazed out at the horizon. In the wormhole, the six figures were still falling, their Bakugan yelling.

"Yo, Drago! There's the entrance!"

"We're getting close!"

"What? Where! I don't see anything!" Runo complained from Gorem's shoulder. "Are we there yet?"

"Ugh! Shut up, Runo!" Julie said back.

"I have a feeling that the next is the Subterra/Haos world!" Dan yelled to the others.

"Puh-lease!" Runo retorted.

"Hey! There's the opening! It's really close!" Julie interrupted.

"Let's keep our guard up, everyone. Who knows what Bakugan are waiting for us!" Tigrerra said. Dan stuck out his hand.

"I'm looking. Whoa!" Dan suddenly fell off of Drago's shoulder, too shocked to focus on his symbol.

"Oh no!" Dan was in free fall as he neared the yellow orb at the end.

"I'll save you!" Tigrerra yelled, reaching.

"Quick, Tigrerra! Grab him!" Drago yelled, flying after them.

"Grab him?! Somebody grab me! Whoargh!" Gorem shouted as they all fell through. They found themselves on the ground, the brunette and blunette groaning as they tried to stand.

"We're here!" Dan sighed in relief.

"So, looks like you were right!"

"This place is so drab!"

"If this is the light and earth area, then does that mean _they're_ back?" Tigrerra asked.

"Not exactly!" shouted a voice.

"Huh?" Tigrerra said. They turned to see two Bakugan.

"Hey there, humans!" said the other.

"Hey, sis! You ready to play?"

"Oh, goody! I can't wait!"

"Is that really Tricloid and Rabeeter?" Dan asked Drago.

"No. Something seems off, and it's not just their color scheme." Drago was right about that. Just like the last ones, their eyes were red, and all of the white parts were black.

"Hey! If you guys think you can beat us in another race, you're mistaken!" Dan yelled to Rabeeter.

"Ha! We're not like the _old_ Tricloid and Rabeeter! We're Shadow Bakugan!"

"Yeah! Naga just copied us from those has-beens!" Tricloid said. Indeed, they were different. Tricloid wasn't childish, and Rabeeter wasn't girly.

"Wow. They really aren't like the others, huh?" Runo asked Tigrerra.

"Indeed, but I wonder where the originals are."

"Who cares where they are?! We're stronger and fiercer!" Rabeeter shouted.

"Yeah!" Tricloid added.

"Our attacks are shadow boosted!"

"We're faster, too!"

"You weaklings can't match us!"

"And you're going down!" they shouted together. Drago just walked past them.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. You're attacks aren't that great, and you're almost as immature as them." The others followed. The Subterra/Haos/Shadow hybrids growled.

"Oh no you don't! Shadow Lightning Tornado!" A yellow black with black lightning blast hit Gorem, sending him into a wall. They turned to the two evil-doers.

"Oh, you wanna battle? You got one! Let's go, Drago! Ability Card, activate! Boosted Ultima!" Drago blasted a huge stream of fire at Tricloid.

"Shadow Diamond Reflect!" A shining, black diamond surrounded Shadow Rabeeter as she got in the way, negating the effect.

"Man, they're tough! This is a real battle, this time! Let's go, guys!" Tigrerra yelled, charging at them with Velocity Fang.

"Alright, Tigrerra! Show those girls whose boss!" Runo cheered. Tricloid laughed as she picked up a boulder, hitting Tigrerra with it. It wasn't an ability, but it was enough to hurt the tiger creature.

"My turn again!" Tricloid chuckled. "Shadow Muddy Road!" She sunk into the ground and began to move about underneath them, black electricity dancing along the rock formation. Julie couldn't focus on the location. She popped out from underneath, punching Drago into the air.

Runo threw a Gate Card onto the ground, causing a yellow rectangle to appear then fade. Once Rabeeter floated onto it, well, the rest was history.

"Gate Card, open! Energy Merge!" The Bakugan's power was absorbed into Tigrerra, letting her get knocked back.

"That's it! I'm through! Shadow Petrifi-" The two were caught short as a fast fist connected with their faces, sending flying away into the shadows. Dan turned and cheered.

"Tricloid! Rabeeter! It's you!" The two gushed with hearts coming off of them as they saw the brunette.

"Hi there, cutie! Nice to see you again!" Tricloid cheered, making Dan recoil.

"Totally! We've been so bored!" Rabeeter yelled. Runo stepped in front of her boyfriend, growling.

"You leave him alone!"

"Who says?" Tricloid huffed childishly. Runo placed the back of her palm.

"This says! Haos!" The Haos symbol appeared, causing the two to gasp.

"She's, like, the Haos Guardian, sis!" Rabeeter gasped. The two sisters looked at each other before repeatedly bowing.

"We submit to your awesome power, o master!" they said together. Runo smirked, thinking she could get used to the treatment.

"Okay, then. So, you two girls feel like helping us get to the next world?" Julie asked. The two stood up, nodding feverishly.

"We'd love to help! I promise I won't goof off!" Tricloid said, her eyes shining. The perfect picture of innocence. Right. She could be down-right scary when she wanted to be.

"If we take on those copies at a rate of 4 to 1, we'll win no doubt!" Runo said, pumping her fist into the air.

"True, but they're twice as powerful, so it's only a 2 to 1 ratio," Drago reminded her. That coolly burst her bubble. With a sigh, the group trekked along the dirt road. The silence becoming uncomfortable, Dan decided to provoke a conversation.

"So… what have you two sisters been doing for the past five years?" Rabeeter and Tricloid giggled.

"Like, we've just been mostly trying to find new friends, inventing new games, and all that other stuff. But, nothing beats a totally good battle!"

"Yeah, and we have you guys to thank for that!" Tricloid exclaimed, comically jumping up and down. Dan leaned over into the red dragon's ear.

"You're wrong. They're not a little weird. They're incredibly weird!" Dan whispered. Drago subtly nodded.

"So, who's the Subterra Guardian?" Rabeeter asked. Julie raised her hand shortly, but she still strode forward. Well, not really. She was riding on Gorem's shoulder all the while.

"So… Dan, right?" Tricloid asked. He nodded. "Are you a Vestroian Guardian?" Dan smirked, activating his Pyrus symbol. She unintentionally gushed, earning a bloodlust filled growl from the blue haired light controlling warrior. She stopped and kept walking, trying to keep quiet.

Runo was scary.

Of course, Rabeeter was only focusing on everywhere she looked to see if those clones were nearby. Sure enough, evil cackling echoed from the shadows.

"Where are they?!" Drago yelled, looking around rapidly.

"Haos Sphere!" The ball of light was thrown illuminating the ground and their figures. "Drago! 3:00, fire!"

"Ultimate Dragon!" Drago glowed red before blasting fire.

"Shadow Saturn Balloon!" Shadow Tricloid grew to a large size.

"Oh, yeah? Take this! Grand Impact!" Julie yelled. Gorem threw his hammer, but it was absorbed.

"Oh, man! Our abilities are useless!" Gorem groaned.

"Not all of them!" Runo yelled. "Ability Card, activate! Subterra and Haos Co-Relation!" Gorem and Tigrerra got a massive power boost.

"Now, I'll activate the same card!" Gorem's power increased. "Now, Fusion Ability, activate! Distraction Buster!" Shadow Tricloid shrunk.

"My turn! Doppelganger!" Rabeeter created four illusionary copies of herself, doubling her power level. Shadow Rabeeter tried to hit the original with a light attack, but ended up missing. She was tackled by the real Rabeeter, getting thrown into a wall.

"Take this! Shadow Whirlwind!"

"I don't think so! Lightning Shield!" The two Tricloids clashed in battle.

"Alright, Drago! Let's help 'em out! Ability, activate! Boosted Ultima!"

"Shadow Gamma Ray!" Rabeeter yelled.

"Think so? Dragon Plus!" Drago yelled, negating her attack.

"Let's go, guys! I'd say it's time to wrap this up! They're getting annoying!" Runo yelled.

"Velocity Fang!" Tigrerra charged, her blades gleaming.

"You got it, Runo! Now, Drago!"

"Ultimate Dragon!" Drago was surrounded by a red aura as he flew right for them.

"Let's do it, Gorem!"

"Grand Impact!" Gorem swung his mighty hammer at the unfortunate enemies.

"Tricloid, hit it!"

"You got it! Mud Shake!" Tricloid created a circle of mud, trapping the Shadow Hybrid Bakugan.

"My turn! Petrify!" Rabeeter turned the two to stone.

"Alright! Julie! Let's do it! Pyrus! By the power of the Pyrus Guardian!"

"Subterra! By the power of the Subterra Guardian!"

"Pyrus/Subterra! Combination Blast! Volcanic Burst!" A stream of lava and flaming boulders shot from the ground.

"Let's wrap it up, Julie! Haos! By the power of the Haos Guardian!"

"Subterra! By the power of the Subterra Guardian!"

"Haos/Subterra! Combination Blast! Blinding Diamond Sandstorm!" A storm of shining diamonds mixed with blinding light, and the attacks caused a humongous explosion.

"Alright! We did it! We did it!" Tricloid cheered.

"That was, like, awesome!" Rabeeter hollered. They ran joyfully to the end of the path, seeing a familiar red and purple door. Tricloid opened it, revealing a wormhole.

"You go get 'em, Dan! We'll handle things here and get back to you!" Runo hollered.

"Good luck, guys!" Dan yelled, waving as he ran. "Wait!" He ran back and gave Runo a small peck on the cheek. "Thank you." Runo blushed as she watched her boyfriend disappear to the next world.

"Good luck yourself…" Runo whispered.

**Sorry it was shorter, but the YouTube episode was only used for the beginning dialogue. The next one will be completely based off of episode 43, so it will be longer.**

**Okay, now to go over the votes. Five people want it to stay as Amy x Speedy. Four people want me to give Tails an older sister.**

**Oh, man! It's too close! I can't just make a choice from a one-vote win! Oi, you know what? Fine. I'll just create some separate stories involving each scenario, and the one with the most positive reviews will win, okay? There. Problem solved. It'll just involve more typing. **

**Oh, yeah, and I'll add some different scenarios, too. Don't worry; none of them will have Tails as a girl. Then again, it would be funny to see Kazo scream and yell at school… *mischievous chuckle***

**Also, I just realized that I have to change more chapters than I thought. Don't worry; it shouldn't take me too long to make Ch. 58.**


	57. The Origin of Chaos

**A/N: Well, while I'm busy with my other stories, I'd like to say that I want to thank everyone who has stuck with this story so far. There are only about six chapters left, if that. **

**I'm very sorry to keep you waiting. I wanted there to be only three chapters for this arc, but you all deserve it for having to deal with an author that can't juggle school assignments and a stupid biology project with the holidays. So, the final chapter for Vestroia will come in a few days to a week, depending on how long it takes to get the YouTube videos to download for my dialogue layout.**

**Again, I'm really sorry for being so slow!**

**And now, it's time for the famous Review Response!!**

**yongunamutaichou: Why thanks! I'm glad you like it.**

**alxkend: You are correct!**

**brave kid: Thank you.**

**Pikana: I knew you would. I can see you like the word 'epic'. Thesaurus, huh? Haha!**

**EM98: I'm sure my friend Kazo knows a lot about LOTR .**

**Dragonickmaster: If you are referring to the characters in New Vestroia, I will, but not in this story.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Never mind? Okay. Hm… Well, that is a good question you have. If they did… hm…**

**natureprince12: Thanks for your comment on the chapter.**

**bowsermonster: I don't remember a name like that… ah, you probably went under some other name. I'm working on it. It's slow, but getting there.**

**Oh, I also want to say that I'm skipping those stupid changes. I have some ways to make them clear and workable.**

**Okay, now it's onto the second final chapter for the arc!**

Drago and Dan were the only ones in the wormhole.

"Drago, I'm worried about the others."

"Relax, Dan. The Shadow Hybrids won't bother us. Besides, the other Bakugan can handle things."

"I know, but even their powers might not be of enough help! Oh, well. Let's go!"

"Right! Hold on!" Drago headed for a wall of thick, reddish clouds. Dan used his powers to quickly burn a tunnel through them, and they arrived at the menacing hybrid world. Streams of hot lava cut through thick layers of black ash ground. Purple lightning coursed through red cloudy skies. It was the perfect picture of evil.

"Whoa! This is major déjà vu! Drago, be careful!" Dan yelled, signaling towards the dark energy. Drago dodged the streaks of lightning by using the pillars. "Drago, I sure hope you know what you're doing!"

"I have a good hunch that Centorrior and Druman have also become Shadow Hybrids."

"Huh? Are you sure?"

"I'm not 100% certain, but it makes sense. This place is becoming more and more unstable. Without the Chaos Emeralds keeping this in balance, history is beginning to repeat itself. We must get the core out of Naga!" Dan nodded before he heard a screech. Drago noticed it and turned to see Darkus creatures rise from the craters. "Whoa! This army is much larger than the last one!"

"There are Garganoids and Fear Rippers and Reapers everywhere!"

"The Silent Core's negative energy has seeped into this dimension more rapidly than the others! I sense a threat!"

"Okay, no time for games! Pyrus! By the power of the Pyrus Guardian! Lava Barrier!" A wall of lava shot up from the ground, protecting Drago and destroying some of the evil Bakugan. Drago flew up and out of the barrier to find a safer place.

"Get ready, Dan!!" Drago landed on the rocky ground, and the creatures surrounded him. "Enough! You're all being controlled! Fight the energy! I don't need to fight you!" Suddenly, the sound of stomping hooves was heard from a short distance. The two turned to the source of the noise.

A wall of fire shot up from between them, and a centaur appeared. It was obviously Centorrior, but his mask was gray, and his eyes were red.

"Shadow Vortex Dark Pyrus!" He shot a laser into the sky, and purple beams of energy rained down with vigorous black lightning.

"Shadow Centorrior!" Dan yelled.

"That could only mean…" Shadow Druman emerged from the clouds. His eyes glowed crimson and the eyes on his wings were red. Black armor covered the sharp claws on his shoulders.

"Shadow Vortex Dark Flame!" He opened his mouth and formed a red ball that crackled with black lightning. Purple and black lightning shot down, hitting the dark army and the red dragon.

"Shadow Druman!" Dan gasped.

"Oh ho ho… so nice to see you again, Dragonoid!" Centorrior chuckled.

"Sorry about the greeting, but negative energy will do that!" Druman cackled.

"This is crazy…" Dan said just above a whisper.

"I can't say that the feeling is mutual!" Drago growled.

"I do apologize that our history was a little shaken up."

"Bah! You two are like cockroaches! You get squashed, retaliated, and then you somehow come back for more!" Druman cackled.

"Yes, it is strange isn't it?" Centorrior teased. Drago growled. Man, they were getting on his nerves!

"Enough talk! I'll finish you this time!" Druman rammed into Drago harshly, knocking him towards the river. Dan held on to his horn before landing onto the lava. "What?!"

"Hah! You're not the only one with power!" Dan's symbol was still active. "Lava Burst!" Bubbles of lava shot at the two. The two knocked them away.

"Grr! That's it! You're dead!"

"Good riddance to the both of you! Shadow Vortex Dark Pyrus!"

"Shadow Vortex Dark Flame!" The two attacks combined and headed for Drago.

"Rapid Saber!" A red blur zipped by, grabbing Drago. "Dan, hurry!" Dan nodded and summoned a wave of molten rock, and he surfed by the two creatures to where the blur headed.

"Nobilion!? How did he get back!?" Druman yelled.

"Calm yourself, Druman. He is of no threat. We will get them later." Meanwhile, Drago woke up inside of a familiar cave hidden by a lava fall flowing down a mountain.

"H-Huh? Where am I?" He looked around and saw Dan emerge from the lava fall.

"Man, I love these powers!" Dan exclaimed.

"Dan! Where are we?"

"Nobilion saved you, of course! He wanted me to follow you!"

"But… where is he?" A shadow came out from the lava, and Nobilion emerged.

"Hey! Nice to see you're awake, my friend!" Nobilion exclaimed.

"Nobilion! I'm very grateful," Drago replied.

"Aw, you don't need to flatter me!" Nobilion said. Dan cocked his head.

"Nobilion… you look… younger!" Indeed, there were a few changes. His physique was much slimmer, and his orange and beige fur was shorter and shinier. Also noticeable was that his armor was a glowing crimson, and the onyx markings were more like a finely cut obsidian.

"Nobilion, what is happening lately?" Drago asked. Nobilion closed his emerald orbs.

"Ah, well, let me explain. Back when you restored the cores and reformed the Perfect Core, the Wonder Revolution caused another strange effect! White Ones failed to exist, as elemental boundaries disappeared. Naga's energy signature had somehow found its way back to the center of the universe. This caused it to be affected by the positive energy and the negative energy."

"This is starting to make sense!" Dan said. "So, Naga was being restored over time all along!"

"Exactly! But then, the negative energy returned Naga's ambitions, and he devised a new plan! His form and powers were slowly becoming dark-attributed, so he used that to make the core unstable!"

"Of course!" Drago yelled. "Naga's behind everything!"

"I'm afraid that's just the beginning, Drago. Naga decided that domination wasn't enough! He decided to expand its reach and wipe out our world and the human world!"

"So he needed more power!" Dan growled, punching his fist.

"Yes. Naga knew that if New Vestroia expanded out of control, it would instantly collapse on itself, bringing the human world with it! So, he used the growing realm to open the gate between New Vestroia and Smash World. However, the Chaos Emeralds had an adverse effect. They slowed down the expansion!"

"So that's why Naga was frustrated during the occurrence!" Drago said in total realization.

"Quite! It was then that Naga tried to remove the emeralds, but they created a force field. This was what caused the Smashers to get sent to the actual realm. Darkus Reaper, of course, led them to the human world. The expansion of our dimension's energy was what caused their abilities to become cards. As they grew stronger, their resilience to the energy increased."

"So, what's with the Shadow Bakugan? How did they get here?" Dan asked suddenly.

"That, my friends, is the biggest part of it all! You see, Naga's still has residual energy left over from the Silent Core. When that energy combined with his darkness attributed power, a new energy emerged. This… is Shadow Energy. Using such power, Naga began to create a massive army of super powered creatures. These creatures are just soulless zombies, hollow shells of pure power."

"So that's why Naga has been so patient! His army is still growing! But why did he need Metal Sonic, is what I want to know," Drago told the tiger. Nobilion headed for the exit.

"Follow me! I'll explain along the way to the center!" Dan jumped through the fall as Drago flew out. Dan walked beside the old, wise creature. "Naga has learned plenty through his observations. He needed someone who could copy abilities and give them to him. Metal Sonic was a perfect candidate. Necrophilen was the final piece of the power puzzle. If Metal Sonic should give that ability to Naga… He can absorb his entire army at will!"

Dan and Drago gasped as the incident dawned on them. Drago growled as he was growing more frustrated.

"So, what of the expansion? Why is Vestroia collapsing now?" Dan asked.

"That can be easily explained. As soon as Wayvern's energy passed by the cores, they zipped out of their spots and into her, reviving her being. This caused the force fields to multiply. The Master Emerald created an eighth, more powerful field of energy. When she gave the cores to you, Drago, the Earth's atmosphere restored the cores."

"So, when the Chaos Emeralds were expelled out of New Vestroia, it split back into Vestroia?" Dan asked. Nobilion nodded. "So then when Naga collided with the free Silent Core and returned to the center…" Drago continued where he left off.

"The resulting surge caused the hybrid worlds to appear, and it affected Centorrior and Druman along with Tayghen and Hairadee!"

"That's correct, Drago. However, Tricloid and Rabeeter were too pure-hearted to be affected, so Naga created his own out of the collapsed ecosystem! Of course, my half a brain wasn't affected by the surge of energy. However, it did do one thing!" he proudly proclaimed. "I'm stronger and better than ever!"

"That's good to know," Drago said with a sigh of relief.

"Ha! Found you!" Shadow Druman cackled.

"It's time we finished you for good," Shadow Centorrior said, readying his lance.

"Get out of my way!" Drago roared.

"Oh, please, Dragonoid! Do you think that the same trick will work twice?" Druman mocked.

"We will protect our master no matter what. Just try and beat us!" Centorrior demanded.

"Very well! Power Charge!" Nobilion roared. "I'll stop you both no matter the cost!" Centorrior charged with a fierce cry, and the two met with a large, bright blast of energy. The two fell into the lava.

"Nobilion!" Dan yelled. Nobilion surfaced.

"Don't worry! I'm okay! You just worry about taking care of Druman!" Dan nodded.

"You got it!" Drago's eyes went up.

"Don't go overboard with your powers, Daniel."

"Okay, Drago," Dan replied. Druman was flying at the two at full speed.

"You won't get away!" Dan's eyes slightly narrowed.

"Stay low, Daniel! Use your powers effectively!"

"Time to power up! Ability Card, activate! Fire Judge!" Dan's hand lit aflame before he tossed the flaming card. "Now, my turn! Pyrus! By the power of the Pyrus Guardian! Flame Blaster!" Dan shot a multitude of flames from his palms as Drago was surrounded by funnel of fire.

"Shadow Eclipse Assault!" A creepy black and purple fog glazed over the two, and it crackled with dark lightning. The darkness extinguished the flames and weakened Drago.

"Impossible! He sapped my power!"

"Shadow Fire Tornado!" Druman was surrounded by spiraling fire that buzzed with lightning. The stream got smaller and deadlier, and he rammed Drago at full force.

The two were knocked to the side and hid behind a rock that Shadow Druman zipped through.

"His powers are much stronger than usual! His attacks weaken others by almost twice as much! I don't know what we can do!" Drago roared. He glanced over to see how Nobilion was holding up.

"You fool. Having a younger body will not help you at all! Why don't you just give up?" Shadow Centorrior asked.

"You are the fool, Shadow Centorrior! You don't realize how in vain your efforts are! Don't you know? The good guys always win!" Centorrior growled.

"I have had enough of you." Centorrior blasted him straight into the sky, but Drago caught him. He was carried off to a place at a far enough distance.

"Are you okay, Nobilion?" The Tigrerra stood up and shook off the dirt.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Drago. But you need to stop them! I can't use any Shadow Abilities. I'm going to take off. Good luck!" Nobilion ran off with his Rapid Saber to recover.

"We'll beat him, Nobilion. I promise," Dan said. A blast sounded near their feet. Centorrior and Druman were right above them.

"You two are horrible hiders, you know that?" Druman cackled.

"I say, no more games! It's time to battle!" Drago spread his wings and lifted into the sky.

"I couldn't agree more!" Dan glared at them.

"You two are just merciless monsters! Your deeds in the past and present end here! Gate Card, set!" Dan threw down the card, and it grew before disappearing.

"Let's do this!" Drago growled. Druman flew toward the two.

"Gate Card, open! Energy Merge!" Shadow Druman's power was sapped into Drago.

"Not this again!" Druman roared.

"That's right! But this time, I'll fry those wings before you can counteract!" Dan powered up. "Let's go! Lava Burst!" The lava shot up towards him. Druman spread his wings and they turned black.

"Shadow Grand Down!"

"Oh no you don't!" Dan increased the speed, but they only charged his wings.

"Ha ha! Pathetic! Let me show you how it's done." Drago shot a Boosted Ultima at the creature, but it was dodged as the Shadow Hybrid attacked. The two were knocked in the dirt as Shadow Centorrior charged. Dan threw a Mind Ghost card, causing an explosion.

"We have to stop them! Extreme Meltdown!" Dan shot a stream of lava, melting the exploded ground. Dan cheered. "Ha! That had to have done something! Huh?!" Centorrior was totally unharmed. "H-How is that possible?! Their Shadow Abilities can't be that strong, can they?!"

"It looks like you underestimated us, human!" Centorrior stated before he shot a purple laser from his lance. Drago's wing was hit badly, causing him to fall sideways. Dan flew backwards, but he used his Nova Rocket to stabilize himself.

"Shadow Vortex Dark Pyrus!" Shadow Centorrior shot his beam into the sky, forming a sphere that rained down dark energy. Dan looked at his friend, who was obviously in pain. The brunette growled.

'Alice… Masquerade… If you can hear me, please! We need your help!'

-Earth-

Alice was happily watering the flowers inside the mansion.

"So, you feel better, sis?" Masquerade asked. Alice nodded happily.

"Yeah! Thanks for being a good brother. I'll join you for lunch in a bit." Masquerade smiled.

"_Alice… Masquerade… If you can hear me, please! We need your help!"_

The two siblings gasped. That was Dan!

"What's going on!?" Masquerade said to his sister. "It sounds like Dan's in trouble!" Alice turned to him.

"Masquerade, you're the better brawler. Here. Take Hydranoid and his Ability Cards. You and Dan can beat whoever is there!"

"Are you sure, Alice?" Alice nodded firmly.

"Here's my Warp Card. Good luck, brother." Masquerade nodded. The wind whipped around him as he stepped outside with Hydranoid and Exedra in his hand.

**Well, I published my first three oneshots, but I think I'll stop. I'll keep Speedy x Amy, but I'll add in an older sister for Tails that will be Sonic's love interest. I'll put her in Ninja Madness. There, problem solved… again… Everybody happy?**


	58. The Calvalry Has Arrived!

**A/N: I forgot to say one thing. For those of you who already read Chapter 58, there was a mistake. Nobilion said that Necrophilen was the final piece. I meant to put down Netherwar. He's the one who can absorb Darkus Energy. **

**Oh, by the way, I have fantastic news! All of the final chapters, from 60 up to the Epilogue, are done! I'll submit each new chapter every week, just so I'll know I got the most reviews I could.**

**Okay, now it's time for Review Response!**

**GammaTron: Well, maybe. I don't know how I can work out him becoming Neo Dragonoid. If he does, it'll be after Pokemon Panic or after Digital Dismay, depending on where I fit in the Vestals.**

**galactic commander neptune: I'm glad to hear it.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Well… maybe. It would be hard to add in new attributes. I know that in Chaos Brawlers there will be a seventh.**

**brave kid: I look forward to typing Ninja Madness as well! Plus the other stories!**

**bowsermonster (): I can't wait either. Believe me, there will be action after a few chapters, and during this one!**

**alxkend: You bet it is!!**

**RYANTHELIONJ17: Well, I might do that. I don't know much about Soul Calibur, though.**

Masquerade suddenly jumped out of the rainbow colored square above the ocean. He placed his hands to his sides as he dove headlong into the large circle.

"Yahoo!!" His body soon disappeared into the glowing circle.

Meanwhile, back in the Pyrus/Darkus dimension, a weakened Drago was struggling to get up. His body was crackling with dark lightning. Dan was breathing heavily as he stood only two feet away. His left arm was too weak to lift for an attack, and his right shoulder was bruised. His newfound resilience was slowly helping.

He looked over to see Shadow Centorrior and Shadow Druman rush over to the weakened Bakugan. Centorrior spun his lance before slashing it and knocking Drago even farther. Dan felt useless to be able to do nothing.

"Heh! This is too easy!" Druman laughed.

"Now it's time for you to die!" Centorrior was about to stop on him, but three purple spheres of electricity hit a nearby mountain and distracted him. "Now what?!"

"The cavalry has arrived! Now this is what I call evening the odds!" the blonde spoke.

"Masquerade! You came!" Drago lifted his head up.

"We all will be sure to stop you!" Hydranoid growled

"So, you guys heard me calling for help?" Dan asked. Masquerade smirked.

"How could I not?" Drago stood up to face them.

"It won't work. Hydranoid, you are strong, but not strong enough with us to help," Drago sighed. The three heads grinned.

"Did you forget? **We never come unprepared**. _We are Alice's. There is still Masquerade's Bakugan_."*** Exedra then made his appearance, ready to fight.

"Are you ready for a real challenge?" Masquerade taunted.

"Look! That brat has Exedra with him!"

"Feh. The traitor will still succumb to our power," Centorrior told Druman. They summoned their waves of Bakugan. Serpenoids, Ratteloids, Garganoids, and others surrounded them. "These are more than enough to destroy you weaklings." Hydranoid retaliated with his Terminal Trident so as to not damage them too badly.

"Can you do this?" Drago asked.

"I'll be of assistance." Exedra fired beams from his mouths and stomped the creatures.

"Right. Let's go!" The two Darkus Bakugan fired attack after attack and Drago took to the skies. The two launched a combination of fire attacks that just barely missed Centorrior. Drago and Dan gasped in surprise. That attack should've hit dead on!

"Ha! You missed!" Shadow Centorrior cackled as he raised his lance. He slammed Drago with it, knocking Dan off his head. Luckily, he caught himself with his Flare Booster.

"Dang, that was strong," Dan muttered. Masquerade saw Druman charging.

"Hey! Look out, Exedra! Hydranoid, attack!" Hydranoid fired several spheres, but Druman changed direction and hit the three-headed hydra. Masquerade was flung off of Hydranoid's head, but he landed on his feet expertly. Dan ran up to the blonde.

"Hey! This isn't working! We need to team up again!"

"Just like last time?" he asked, his brown eyes showing curiosity. Dan nodded, and Masquerade smirked.

"Pyrus/Darkus! Flaming Shadow!" The two guardians unleashed a wall of flames and darkness at Shadow Druman.

"Shadow Pyrus Reflector!" The fire and darkness attack was redirected back to a few feet in front of Shadow Centorrior.

"What just happened!?" Dan panicked.

"His new Shadow Abilities are allowing him to deflect Pyrus _and_ Darkus attributed abilities!" Masquerade explained. Shadow Centorrior shot black and purple lightning at the two humans, so they warped to a nearby cave to formulate a plan. Hydranoid was being attacked by Centorrior, but Exedra was doing well to hold him off slightly.

Masquerade and Dan warped back to the surface and ran to help their Bakugan. Druman shot out red spheres and sent them flying a foot or two. An agitated blonde threw down a Gate Card as Dan climbed onto Drago's head. Drago took off to take care of Druman, who was still shooting.

Dan decided to activate Dragon Plus to protect Drago from Shadow Druman. Hydranoid was pulling on Centorrior to get him on.

--Flashback--

"I think that a repeat action is what we need. If we do the same thing we did five years ago, I'm positive we can take them down!" Masquerade explained.

--End Flashback--

Hydranoid used his tendrils to pull him onto the card.

"Now! 3rd Judgment!" Masquerade called. The card beneath the two Bakugan glowed. Exedra and Drago blasted Druman onto the card as it started.

"Alright… He did it… But it's not over yet," Dan said to Drago and Exedra.

"Let's do this! You two underlings are going down!" Hydranoid attacked the two Bakugan as Masquerade activated his ability. "Now, Destroy Vanish!"

"Ha! Nice try!" Druman said.

"The same trick won't work twice!" Druman opened the eyes on his wings.

"Shadow Eyes of Destruction!"

"Shadow Grand Down!" Destroy Vanish and 3rd Judgment were cancelled, but Masquerade still had a smirk on his face. Dan had on his game face and rushed in.

"Let's go, Drago! Ultimate Dragonoid!" Drago shot a beam at Centorrior, but Shadow Druman used his Shadow Pyrus Reflector to send Masquerade and Hydranoid falling off the destroyed cliff. Exedra then rushed after the two villains.

"Masquerade!" Exedra hollered, running to the cliff. Dan was beside him while Druman was in the air.

"Don't worry, Exedra. He'll be fine," Dan said. Druman cackled from his spot.

"Only three more left," Shadow Centorrior said.

"Face it!" Shadow Druman laughed. "You're powerless, Exedra!" Dan growled as he started running.

"No he's not!" Dan quickly threw a card surrounded by black flames. "Spice Slayer!" Exedra powered up and faced Druman as Dan kept running.

--Flashback--

"Here. Take this card and use it as a diversion," Masquerade told Dan as he handed them the dark-attributed card. "Once you activate it, run off and try to lead Centorrior away again. Trust me. This'll work with our new powers."

--End Flashback--

Dan ran off as he was chased with purple and black lightning. He used his Flare Booster to give him a bit of an edge.

"Give up human. You can't beat me," Centorrior laughed. Drago and Exedra faced Shadow Druman.

"Ultimate Dragon!" Drago shot out a fireball as he roared.

"Leap Sting!" Exedra shot small beams of energy from his many heads.

"Shadow Pyrus Reflector!" Druman surrounded himself in his red aura and it crackled with black lightning. The two attacks bounced off easily. "Hah! You two are pathetic!" Dan was still running from the electric onslaught. He jumped across the lava river with his abilities.

Once he crossed the valley, he saw the centaur creature seemingly laughing. Dan glared at the beast before taking off again to increase the distance between them. He just hoped that Masquerade's plan worked.

Drago continued to blast fireballs from the air at Shadow Druman, but they kept getting knocked back. Dan stopped in the middle of a clearing, and he turned to see Shadow Centorrior.

"I don't know exactly what you have planned, but nothing will work."

"You humans are so pathetic!" Druman laughed as he landed next to his ally. Dan smirked.

"What's with you?" Centorrior muttered.

"Let's go, Drago! Time to get off of here! Pyro Sphere!" Dan summoned a huge sphere of fire that hid them and launched for the two. Drago took off into the skies. From a mountain, the blonde shadow-wielder was waiting. Hydranoid charged his own attack as Masquerade activated his Final Destruction card.

The glowing hydra launched his three spheres, and they merged together into a sparking blue shape that zoomed toward them from behind.

"Now! Shadow Sword!" Masquerade threw his blade of darkness into the attack, creating a blue and black shape. The attack hit its mark, and the two evil doers screamed in pain.

"Not again! This is impossible!" Druman yowled. Centorrior vanished into nothingness. Druman flew into the air, damaged but alive. "How?! How did you do this?!" Dan smirked, doing his nose flick.

"It was easy! You two fell for a slightly upgraded version of our previous strategy! You see, we knew that our combo attacks would fail, but not if we merged the attacks with our most powerful guardian attacks!"

"You fooled us again!" Druman yelled, shocked beyond belief.

"We knew you had gained some knowledge from our last battle," Drago explained. "Yet you never really knew how strong the Vestroian Guardians were! That is your downfall! Ultimate Dragon!" Dan stuck out his hands.

"Pyrus! By the power of the Pyrus Guardian! Supernova Flare!!" Dan shot out his bright white beam of supernova heat, obliterating Shadow Druman. Masquerade gave a thumb's up. The five regrouped in the clearing.

"That was a good show, Dan. Good job!" Masquerade said, shaking his hand. It didn't take long for the others to show up as well. The two greeted them. Julie then noticed Masquerade's presence.

"Hey! How'd you get here?!"

"Dan called for help! Duh!" he snickered. Julie fumed slightly but returned to grinning.

"So you guys managed to stall off the next ones?" Marucho asked.

"Of course! Now we're ready to take down Naga!" Dan said. The ground cheered for their temporary victory. It was then that a portal opened up above them.

"Looks like our ride is here…" Runo said. The group jumped and flew into the portal and headed for the center of the world.

"Let's hope that Naga wasn't able to leave!" Dan said. He glanced at his Bakupod. "Joe! Come in!" A staticy voice came in.

"Dan! Are you there?"

"Joe! How's Wayvern doing?"

"Not good! She seems to be getting worse! And I think I just saw Naga fly out!" Dan punched his palm, growling.

"Drat! We're too late! Wayvern! Is there any chance you can redirect this portal out of here?" Shun then put in. Wavern's voice showed up.

"Yes. I think so. Just hang on!" A sphere of light appeared ahead of them to the right.

"Let's go!" Drago said, totally determined. The humans and Bakugan were engulfed by the light and appeared back on Earth, seeing the multicolored sky.

"Okay guys! This is it! It's time to take down Metal Sonic and Naga for good!" Marucho said, clenching his fist.

"Yeah!!"

**So, Naga is back on Earth. Can the Battle Brawlers stop him? Find out! Also, get ready for next week! My OC makes her appearance!**


	59. Enter: The Next OCs!

**We are approaching the end of this journey's beginning. As you know, I've used YouTube for much of my inspiration in the later chapters. However, this time, the final chapters have a new source. **

**Since my second design for my character matches that of a fan-made character from another story, I have gotten permission to use the story as part of my own and, in return, promote this story to other people!**

**So, if you like these chapters, check out **_**Senses of Darkness**_** by **_**cocoacharm15.**_

**Now, it's time for Review Response!**

**GammaTron: Don't worry, I'm trying. Ideas are slowly forming in my head.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: You'll know right now! And thank you for the encouragement!**

**brave kid: I'm glad to see that all of you are still sticking to it!**

**bowsermonster: I'm looking forward to the end as well.**

**RYANTHELIONJ17: This story kicks butt, huh? Well, thanks!**

**alxkend: Of course the good guys will win!**

**natureprince12: Kazo told me the same thing. Look, I know it seems strange that the Smashers aren't in here, but I'm doing this for a reason. It's just that it's too hard to mix them in while I'm trying to be as canon as possible to the series and the fanfic I got this arc from. They'll show up in 64. Just bear with the three more chapters, please! It's only 7 chapters out of 64 and an epilogue! Just a little more than a tenth of the story!**

**But, there are some mentions of the Smashers if that's enough for ya.**

**Okay, now, it's time to meet Nicole! Enjoy the story! Oh, yeah, this will be in POVs.**

**Nicole's POV**

As I awoke seconds before the alarm clock went off I knew it was going to be a bad day. How did I know? I could have attributed it to my supposed psychic ability. And then there was the fact that it was Monday. Even during summer vacation, Mondays usually weren't fun. Either way it didn't matter. Even if my day was horrible, Zora was out to make it worse.

The clock sounded noisily, and I hastily shut it off. I quickly chose an outfit —jeans and a tight green shirt- and headed downstairs. I tiptoed through the hall, praying that Zorano had decided to run away—or should I say, waddle away. No such luck as I walked into the kitchen and found the Darkus Bakugan staring at the television screen. I wasn't interested until she called my name out sharply.

"Nicole!" Mechanically turning to face the screen I saw what was bothering her. A giant hole had appeared in the middle of the ocean near a town called Wardington. A plane headed over the gap, and I immediately realized what was happening. Whoever was in the plane was going to go in there. For once, Zorano did not criticize, complain, or ask questions. Quite surprising, actually. The Bakugan merely jumped out of my bag and onto my shoulder.

Marty, my driver, headed south once we reached the edge of town. At this time of day —the cool early morning- the dock was packed with people boarding their boats and making last minute arrangements before going out to sea. Sensing them before I could actually run into anyone, I followed Marty to a shiny white yacht at the end of the bay.

Good thing he was also experienced with boats because I did not have time to look for someone else to take me to Wardington. I relayed my destination to him letting impatience show in my tone. Then I sensed that I had some bad news coming my way.

"Miss Adams, I know you are in a hurry, but I regret to inform you that the trip will take at most three days," he stated, head bowed.

"Oh," I said, feigning surprise, "well, I suppose I'll be in the living quarters then." I headed into the rather spacious area and closed the door, sighing deeply. The instant we were alone, I anticipated Zorano's need to whine.

"You know, we'd have arrived much sooner had we taken a plane," she told me, evidently miffed.

"Yes, but you know I have a problem with flying," I replied, equally annoyed with her though what she said was true. For some reason I hated the feeling of being thousands of feet up in the air. Heights didn't bother me so much as long as I knew I could descend at any time. The Darkus Bakugan snorted in response.

"James wasn't afraid," she muttered loud enough for me to hear. Though I expected her to say something hurtful —as always- it brought tears to my eyes. The conversation was over. Zorano expected me to feel sad and maybe guilty. And I did.

We reached Wardington sooner than expected, in only two days. The sun was shining, but everything seemed tense and alert. Even Marty —old, fragile, butler Marty- had the feeling that things were off.

"Something is very wrong here, as I assume even you can gather," she mentioned coldly as we stepped off the boat and headed toward the city. Along with the insult to my intelligence, my Bakugan proved my suspicions right. There was a problem —of which we had no knowledge of at the time- and judging by all the children carrying Bakugan on the docks, we'd made the right choice in coming.

"Excuse me!" I called to a girl walking past me, holding an Aquos Bakugan. Her brown eyes widened as she saw me, and instead of stopping, she hurried away. '_That was weird._' I thought to myself. Zorano offered no explanation, but I sensed that she knew. Well, if no one would talk to me, then I'd head into the city.

I quickly looked over the city, trying to decide what direction to go in. From where I was standing, the tallest building was a large tower that appeared to be in the center of Wardington. That seemed to be as good a place as any, probably just because it stood out from everything else.

"We should stay here. The opening was in the ocean, not the city. It'd be foolish to leave." I glanced at my shoulder, waved goodbye to Marty, and stalked off en route to that tower. Zorano protested furiously as I evaded the workers and children. Seeing as I was the one carrying her, I believed it was my right to choose. Obviously, she did not.

"You're making a mistake, Nicole! Do you honestly expect to find answers there? Think for once in your life!" She yelled at me, trying to make me see sense, as she put it.

"Yes, I do." I answered without emotion. Sooner or later, Zorano would use her secret weapon to convince me, but it wouldn't work. I'd tuned her out after a while. Besides, I was already preoccupied with the strange looks other Bakugan players were giving me. It bothered me because, though I'd met other players before, none had ever given me the bizarre glances, almost glares.

It was in the next few moments that everything changed, and I was tossed into the center of the Bakugan problem.

The downtown streets were crowded, and Zorano immediately tensed because of something I hadn't sensed yet. She turned to stare behind me, and I followed her gaze till my eyes fixed upon the six figures running toward us. They were close enough that I could listen to what they were saying. I ducked into an alley, catching some words from them.

"… Vestroian energy source was coming from this direction," I heard a deep voice say.

"Yeah, I hear you Drago, but what is it? One of Naga's underlings?" another male voice asked.

"It must be," a female voice choked out. "The Infinity Core is attempting to leave me." She seemed to be resisting something. I shot a questioning look at Zorano, but she didn't answer. The group had slowed down from what I could distinguish, but they were closing in on the alley. My heart rate picked up, and I sensed them looking into the lane I was hiding in.

"It is coming from the alley," another deep voice informed the crew. Zorano jumped in place from my shoulder and whispered,

"Act normal, we don't know what they want from us." I nodded nervously. I knew they were going to find us, but I couldn't control myself. I flattened my hands against the bricks behind me, and took slow, shuddering breaths.

Shadows fell across the dirt, and I raised my head, locking eyes with a brown-eyed boy my age. He stepped back, as did the others, but I never lost eye contact. My face was composed, while my insides were the complete opposite.

"Drago?" the boy questioned. Drago, I gathered, was the Pyrus Bakugan on his shoulder.

"I do not understand. The energy is coming from her," his Bakugan replied in the first low voice I'd heard. All the others also had Bakugan with them, and said Bakugan talked worriedly amongst themselves. Their owners eyed me disbelievingly. There were four guys and two girls, but one caught my attention.

He wasn't talking with the others, or even looking at them. Instead, he had his eyes closed and an annoyed expression on his face. His hair was long and black, and from what I could tell he was in good physical condition. The boy that I'd seen first spoke to me now.

"Who are you? Are you working for Naga?" I didn't react at first because I was too busy trying to figure out the silent boy. He snapped his fingers impatiently. He would have asked again, but the female voice from before interrupted him. She was a Bakugan also, Haos it seemed.

"The Infinity Core… Her presence is disrupting my control."

"Hang in there, Wayvern," a guy with light brown, almost blonde, hair encouraged. As she said this everyone except the quiet boy started directing questions at me. They drew closer, and other people on the sidewalk, shoving and engrossed in their own worlds, continued walking by. They pushed past the crowd interrogating me, but hadn't come near me yet.

Since they kept diminishing the space between us, I was forced to take steps back, into the alleyway. I hoped that I wouldn't sense anything because they happened to be very observant and would probably know that I had such an ability.

Unfortunately, I sensed a bug —a bug!- leaping off the wall in my direction. Without thinking, I moved, just as Wayvern called out,

"The Infinity Core!" Gasps came from everyone around except from me. Zorano, I believe, demanded that I move out of the way. I couldn't. I looked away, and sensed something coming toward me. The light brightened until I had to cover my eyes. Zorano's weight disappeared from my shoulder. The blinding light hurt, but I couldn't scream. I was frozen.

And then, a whole new weight crashed upon me.

**Zorano's POV**

"Move out of the way!" I screamed at her. She merely stood there with her eyes closed and a strange expression on her face. Fear, maybe. It wouldn't surprise me. Nicole was a coward.

I jumped off her shoulder, landing at her feet. I attempted to look up at her, but the brightness forced me to look away. Those that had confronted us stopped their bickering and shielded their own eyes. Moments later the light faded, and I heard a sickening thud.

Glancing unwillingly in her direction, I saw Nicole sprawled on the ground of the grimy alleyway.

Great. This is just what I needed. The girl doesn't listen to me about staying at the dock, and now she's unconscious. It made me angry, of course, knowing that this could have all been avoided, but then I felt it—a powerful energy pulsating within her. It was similar to what I always felt in her due to the ability she had. This time, however, it was stronger, more obvious. The intensity had to be ten times stronger than usual, but I didn't understand what it was.

Wait—before the light they had been saying something about the Infinity Core. Could it be that…?

"What just happened?" asked a girl with blue hair. Well, she was more of a tomboy, but you get the picture. The others stood motionless for a few seconds before snapping out of their momentary trance. The loud one —the one that had questioned Nicole first- ambled over hesitantly as if I would bite. Very likely considering how much I care for my _partner_. Not.

"Daniel, be careful," his Bakugan advised. Slowly, he lifted Nicole up to a sitting position, but it is clear that she isn't awake. Her head tilted back against his shoulder. He stared curiously at me with his brown eyes while the others gathered in front of him. I didn't make a move to go closer to her. She would live. He glanced between us and the silence was broken by a Bakugan.

"The Infinity Core is no longer with me!" she stated in a tired voice. She was white, but I didn't believe her to be Haos. Her words gave me the answer. Everyone shared a look of concern until the tomboy asked impatiently,

"Where is it then?" another Bakugan spoke.

"The energy is radiating from…" This time it was Daniel's Bakugan —a Pyrus- but the delay in his sentence made it obvious to the humans what we Bakugan already knew. The Infinity Core —the core that balanced out the negative energy of the Silent Core- which used to be infused into this white Bakugan was now residing in the body of Nicole.

Things couldn't get much worse than that. I suppressed the urge to yell at these idiots for ruining my day. Then I thought it over and decided that I needed to figure out who they were and what their intentions were first.

"Holy crap! What are we going to do now?" asked an Aquos Bakugan on the shoulder of a small boy. His panicking was only making things worse as it sank in. What exactly was _I_ going to do now?

All the humans took their time digesting this new information. I for one had no idea how the core had traveled to earth, but that must've explained the feeling I kept having that something was amiss. Now things were definitely wrong. Daniel seemed angry.

"What do you mean it's in her?" he shouted at the Pyrus, casting a confused glance at Nicole as if she would have the answer. Had she been awake it would have made no difference. She hardly ever had an answer to anything.

"I do not understand myself, Daniel, but we must take her to safety immediately." He answered in a deep voice.

"Drago is right, Dan. We don't have time to stand here debating. Naga could send his henchmen here any minute!" The blue-haired girl told him. Apparently, the Pyrus was called Drago.

"If Wayvern isn't holding the core, we really don't know if Naga will hold back against a girl." A boy —well, he was really more of a man, probably eighteen in human years- with brown hair so light it almost looked blonde, responded.

"I agree with Joe. Besides, we have no knowledge of what to expect from this inopportune change of events. May I suggest we take her back to my house until she recovers?" The kid that spoke looked directly at me and smiled. He seemed too small to be hanging around with the big boys.

"You heard him. Let's pack her up and deliver her to his house!" It was the Aquos again and annoying by my standards. I could tell we were going to get along splendidly. Not.

"Excellent plan, Marucho," commented a second Bakugan on his shoulder. Two? It took me a minute to figure out that they were of the Preyas species—the kind that multiply when they evolve.

"It's too bad that Sonic isn't here. We'd all be there in a fraction of a second!" Dan sighed. Although they couldn't tell, I was confused. Sonic? As in, Sonic the Hedgehog? Feh. It figured that video game characters were real. Marucho then used his Bakupod to contact someone. I tried to turn away from these people, toward Nicole, but someone had the nerve to seize me.

"Why hello you cute little Bakugan! I'm Julie. What's your name?" I glared at the bubbly girl because I disagreed. I was not cute. Oh and I didn't like being manhandled. Trying to keep my dignity, I answered,

"Put me down!" Although it wasn't dignified as I would have liked, she dropped me. I rolled toward Nicole and gazed at them again. They were expecting an answer. "I am known as Darkus Zorano." It was Daniel who asked,

"What were you doing here, anyway?" Judging by the look in his eyes and everyone else's, they had plenty more questions to ask. Believe me; I had my fair share of inquires, but I took my own advice and kept my mouth shut.

They were going to take her somewhere, and at this point I didn't believe to have a choice. On my own I couldn't do much. As much as I disliked her, I would not be so cold as to leave her there. Instead of responding to his question I said,

"You're going to help her?" The group nodded. It wouldn't surprise me if they considered her a friend already. These kids were too friendly for their own good. A motor vehicle pulled up behind the children and produced an older looking gentleman around Marty's age.

"Master Marucho, I am pleased to be of assistance." He stated in an aged voice.

"I greatly appreciate your arrival, Kato," the boy responded in a girly voice. "Could you please help Dan take this girl into the limo?"

"Of course, sir," he obliged respectfully. Gently pulling Nicole out of Daniel's grasp, he proceeded to carry her into the car and stretch her across a seat. Everyone followed Marucho in his car, Daniel being the last one. Her picked me up and held me in his open palm.

"Well, Zorano, looks like you're coming with us!" he exclaimed cheerfully. Oh, joy.

The kids piled into the sleek, black limousine quickly, as they were holding back traffic not only on the street but on the sidewalk. Curious pedestrians gazed in awe at the automobile parked on the road. Cars lined up behind us and honked their horns impatiently. I didn't pretend to understand humans; there were two lanes, so why not take the other? Either way, Kato had gotten settled into the driver's seat and drove off slowly.

Though I don't really know much about human transportation, I'd have to say that from what I'd seen it wasn't too shabby. There were black leather seats, tinted windows, and two screens on the back of the front seats. The occupants in the back were separated from Kato, by a dark window that obscured the front of the road.

The four males had sat themselves across from the seat that Nicole was occupying. The tomboy sat by the window on Nicole's seat with the lively white-haired girl in between them. Daniel still held me in his palm while the others stared at either me or the girl. It was disturbing really, knowing that they were watching any move I might make. Nobody spoke, and I used that silence to study them as they examined me.

Casually, I focused my gaze on the tomboy with no name—well, none that I knew of. Honestly, I didn't want to know much about her since she was loud and short-tempered. It surprised me that she wore a skirt, but the outfit in general did not interest me. It didn't match —or at least I thought so, according to what Nicole had told me about fashion- and looked a bit revealing. Her hair was pulled into two pigtails and extremely long. On her shoulder was a Haos Tigrerra. The species suited her, tough and equally loud.

The next girl obviously liked the color pink because she wore shorts and a vest of that color. Her long white hair was in a ponytail. I didn't expect her to have a Subterra Bakugan, much less a Gorem. I thought Ventus suited her more; it was breezy like her.

If I had continued going in order of seating I would have examined Nicole next, but I didn't notice anything too different. Her shoulder length brown hair was disorganized and her clothes were dirty. Oh, and maybe she seemed a bit paler than usual.

I moved on to Daniel. He was easy to analyze. A red outfit and brown hair that could not have been combed this morning. He wore goggles on his head and was a Pyrus battler. Simple enough. I couldn't say whether or not I found him to be less aggravating than the rest of his comrades. I'd probably find out soon, though. I doubted that he would be able to keep silent for much longer.

The small Marucho was the friendliest, it seemed, without overdoing it like the other girl. I'd already determined that he battled with Aquos. His intelligence was what set him apart from the rest. Too much knowledge for one so young was my opinion.

The man who had the white Bakugan —neither Haos nor Ventus- was also very sociable. There wasn't anything particularly remarkable about him except the Bakugan. A White One. One that did not belong in any of the six attributed worlds. I'd never seen one before, but I didn't let it surprise me. I felt like I should save the feeling for later because I was fairly sure I'd need it.

And then there was the final boy. Midnight black hair tied behind him, purple vest, and black pants—he looked… tough? No, it was more like mysterious and independent. The Ventus Skyress with him gave off a similar impression. He hadn't talked at all during the scene in the alley. I doubt he'd even shown any emotion. Not that he had a reason to. Personally, I believed that I would like him the best—a person of very few words and an equal amount of feeling. He was the only one who wasn't staring at one of us, simply looking out the window with golden eyes.

I looked out, too, and saw that we were barely driving past the tower Nicole had been meaning to get at. Was traffic really that bad? Or was this old guy an extremely slow driver? It could have been both, but Daniel suddenly jerked me up to his face, interrupting my rant on slow driving.

"You know, you never did answer my question from before," he said, smiling. "We just want to help." Yes, I'd _never_ heard that one before. Obviously he thought that a little sociability was going to get me open up. Not happening. Seeing as we were eye to eye, I turned my back to him wordlessly. "Hey, you don't have to be like that! Is your partner like this too?" he asked, annoyed. Partner? Please, she was hardly worth being with _me_, not to mention that she acted as my complete opposite.

"Allow me, Dan," suggested Drago. He hopped out of front pocket and onto his hand. "My name is Drago, and I'd like for us to work together since the incident doesn't give us many choices."

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a proud Dragonoid, living up to his position as leader of these poor chumps. But underneath that I saw truth. He was right. They were protecting the core, I assumed, and now it was in Nicole's possession. This meant that they had to protect her as well. She carried no other Bakugan besides me and I would, of course, jump at the chance to defend her. Yeah, right.

"Tell me who you all are. What is going on in Vestroia? How did the core get here?" I questioned in return, addressing not just Drago, but everyone in the limo. My boldness must have caught everyone off guard because even the silent one looked up.

"Okay, so you want answers, too. Alright, well, I'm Dan Kuso." Dan replied. He gestured for Marucho to go next.

"I am Marucho and this Preyas, Preyas Diablo, and Preyas Angelo." The Bakugan flinched away from me when I turned to them.

"She scares me, Preyas," whispered the light one to the original.

"Me, too." Good.

"My name is Joe and this is Wayvern." He pointed at the White One and smiled.

The last male introduced himself coldly as Shun. His Bakugan presented herself and proved to be more agreeable than I'd first assumed.

The tomboy was Runo with her Tigrerra and the other girl was named Julie.

"My name is Subterra Hammer Gorem, but you can call me Gorem," said her Bakugan.

"And together we are the Bakugan Battle Brawlers!" concluded Dan dramatically.

"Um…" I felt uncomfortable with that. It was tacky and well… tacky. No denying the fact that Dan was just as exasperating as his friends.

Everyone exchanged a look with him, and all eyes settled on the unconscious girl. Her face was blank, expressing nothing of the previous ordeal. When she awoke, though, she would probably chew me out. Again. For no reason that I could explain. I, in turn, would argue back and use James to gain an upper hand which would almost certainly cause her to cry.

I went over this scenario in my head, while everyone else waited for me to tell them about her, which I wouldn't do.

"So you're Zorano, but who is she?" I jumped, surprised to hear Shun speaking. He stared intently at me, the cold gaze piercing my resolve to say nothing about her. I supposed that it wouldn't hurt to tell them her name, since at least one of them would hate her the way I do.

With this in mind, I glanced disdainfully at the aforementioned girl.

"Oh," I started dryly. "Her name is Nicole."

"She isn't wearing a Bakupod," Joe noticed.

"Oh, but look at the cute purse she's carrying!" Julie picked up her black handbag. "And it's designer, too!" she gushed. Okay, this girl had some problems. Nicole is unconscious with the Infinity Core and she's worried about her bag! I don't know how the others stood her.

Then again, they're all humans, so they are probably equally strange.

I peeked outside to see how we were progressing. It seemed that Kato had finally decided to budge because I did not recognize anything. A tall building, not the tower, loomed overhead, and we smoothly ceased to move. Suddenly, the butler's face appeared on the screen.

"Master Marucho, we have arrived at your abode," he announced, with a smile.

"I thank you, Kato. Please take Nicole to one of the guestrooms and have the maids take care of her," he ordered in that childish voice that I found difficult to take seriously.

"Yes, sir." Minutes later she was carried off somewhere, while I still stood with Dan.

"Okay, we have a few questions for you now, so—" Dan began to say, but I skipped off and waddled after the maids.

"Hey, where do you think you're going!" shouted Runo. I ignored her and slowly made my way to the elevator. I wasn't going to talk to them when there was the possibility of Nicole waking up and not finding me to argue with. Quick footsteps came up from behind me.

"I'm guessing you're worried about Nicole, right?" asked Joe, pressing the button for it to open. I saw Shun narrow his eyes. Looks like he wasn't being fooled like the others.

"Please allow Kato to take you there, Zorano," Marucho said to me. I silently agreed to be taken there—anything to get away from them. Tomorrow Nicole would sort things out —it was all her fault this happened in the first place- I'd get my argument and life would return to normal.

As if.

**So? How was it? Listen, I know what you're thinking. This looks more like Shun x Nicole! Well, it'll seem that way for a bit before it goes to the real pairing. I hope you read this and also check out **_**Senses of Darkness**_**.**

**Oh, by the way, I posted that one story that was requested by ZeeDraGon. However, I don't know if I should continue it. So, while you wait another week, please go to my profile and vote on my new poll.**

**Anyway, see you in a week!**


	60. Awakening

**Dang! 301 reviews!? You guys are too much! Seriously, thank you all! Well, I guess it's time to respond, isn't it?**

**alxkend: Well, it's not really gone.**

**bowsermonster: Don't worry. There are only four more chapters to go for this one, and then I'll start on the next. Also, the story I got this from is already out. It's not a sneak peek at all.**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Thank you for the words of encouragement.**

**brave kid: You are absolutely right!**

**Kazo the Hedgehog: Yeah, yeah, I know, Mr. Impatient. I just want to get as many reviews as I can in a week. The world does not revolve around you, my friend.**

**Pikana: You mentally died from happiness? Ha ha! **

**Nicole's POV**

…

…

…

"_Nicole?" I looked up at him through blurry eyes. He smiled kindly, offering me his hand. I desperately wanted to take it, to make everything better. "I want you to watch me battle this guy. He won't get away with hurting y—"_

I forced myself to wake up before the dream could go any further. Well, it was more like a memory being played out as a dream, but either way, I didn't want to see the rest. But it was so… so real. Almost as if I…

Logic quickly prevented the end of that thought. That's right, I'm not thinking about that. Logic was right. Logic overpowered emotion. Or, at least, that's what I told myself.

With this in mind, the pounding of my heart gradually slowed as did my breathing. I stayed unmoving for a few minutes with my eyes closed, counting the seconds between each breath.

One… Two. Repeat.

After a while of this it occurred to me that I had no idea where I was. I shut my eyes tighter. Possibilities squirmed in my head, fighting for the right to be considered. Where to begin?

Let's see, if I had been kidnapped, would I feel as comfortable as I do now?

If I was dead, would I feel as relaxed as I do at this moment?

Probably not.

Therefore, I was in all probability alive and not captured. What had happened to me anyway? There were these people and a light. I remember hearing someone say something. Who was it? Someone familiar. Someone like—

"Zorano!" I shouted, quickly sitting up and opening my eyes. An acute pain that began in my head darted through my body. I gasped from the pain, immediately collapsing on the bed with closed eyes again. I curled into a fetal position, attempting to silence the throbbing. Slowly, I opened them.

They hurt as they adjusted to the bright light that was streaming in from… a window? Even though the light was nothing compared to the intense beam that I'd seen before, I couldn't make anything out right away. It took a while, but finally I could distinguish the fuzzy outline of curtains and maybe a table in front.

Gradually, I tried to sit up again, and the pain wasn't as powerful as before. It had reduced to a dull pounding that didn't hurt as much if I didn't think about it. I touched the back of my head and winced. There was a bump there. What I'd hit myself with?

As things became clearer, I realized that I was in a bedroom. It was a relatively nice room, not much smaller than the one I had at my summer house.

The walls were painted a soft aquamarine, and the large window to my left was surrounded by drapes the color of sand. Opposite the window was a corridor that I imagined led to the exit. The king-sized bed was centered against the wall to the left of the entrance.

On the other wall adjacent to the door was framed a watercolor painting of the ocean. There _was _a table in front of the window, several feet at the front of the bed.

Finally, I looked to the right and examined the bathroom. I didn't want to seem nosy so I decided against getting up and looking around.

From what I could see, there was a shower and a tub, and the rest was out of my line of sight. Curiosity took hold of me, despite what I'd told myself about snooping, and I crawled out of the bed, lightly treading toward the unknown bathroom. I was halfway around the bed when my vision flickered.

I stopped and clutched the comforter, trying to keep my balance. It inexplicably resorted to normal, as it had changed at first, I continued toward the bath. Seconds later it flickered yet again, and I grabbed the bed post, but when it returned I didn't have my eyes set on the bathroom anymore.

**There was a woman wearing a maid's outfit in front of me. She stood by the bed, and bowed to me. Then she offered me a set of brand new clothes. **

"**The young masters wish you downstairs in an hour, Miss Nicole," she informed me with her head still bowed.**

Suddenly, my vision wavered again, and I was back to grabbing the bed and making my way to the bathroom. What was that? I desperately wanted an answer, but I couldn't come up with any. Despair and confusion were the main feelings here, but I couldn't suppress them as easily as before.

They escalated and gripped at the edges of my mind, threatening to take over against my wishes. I knelt on the ground, holding my head between my hands—a feeble attempt at regaining control. My sight was leaving me again. Another vision…

**Zorano was turned away from me. She faced the strangers from the alley—the group of friends that all had Bakugan. The leader looked as if he was trying to explain something to me, and I felt the feelings that had all but consumed me moments earlier. He seemed to be pleading with me.**

I could see again, after that and I used the opportunity to run into the bathroom and splash my face with cold water. I took quick, shorts breaths. This was not normal —not that I'd ever been truly normal- and I was more than a little freaked out. Sure I had been able to sense things before, but I could never actually _see_ them.

My ability wasn't something that could just change overnight, was it? And if so, why now? Could it have something to do with whatever happened in the alleyway? I thought back to the vision of the kid explaining something to me. Maybe he knew—and that meant that Zorano probably would, too! She supposedly had the answer to everything, so I believed this would be no different.

The maid! She was going to enter at some point, hopefully soon. I studied myself in the mirror. My jeans and green shirt were gone. I was only in a bath robe. The maid had most likely dressed me differently. It didn't bother me; I was more concerned with whatever was going wrong with me.

I wandered back to the bed and sat down at the end of it, looking out the window. How much time had passed? The sun was high in the sky, but like the last time I'd been outside, the atmosphere was not that of a carefree summer. There was that same anxiety in the air, but what was it?

It had to be almost noon. Yesterday, I was searching for an answer and to what exactly? I hadn't had a plan, but apparently destiny —if there was some force like that out there- did. Had I listened to Zorano maybe I could have avoided this confusion, this sensation of not knowing.

Speaking of Zorano, where was she when I needed her? Of course, I'd never admit that to her directly. Usually I could do without the sarcasm and scorn. This was one of times, if not the only time, I felt that her services were required. It wouldn't surprise me if she had ditched exactly when the danger came. Typical Zorano.

I would have gladly made a list of everything I disliked about her if I hadn't heard the quick footsteps of the maid down the hall. I sat extremely still, calling for her to enter when she knocked hesitantly. The scene played out exactly as the vision except this time she included her name, Sarah, after handing me the clothes. She then hurried out of the room.

I gratefully accepted them, shouting out a thanks before she had left. I went through the shower in a hurry and without really noticing anything. There was no time to waste. I had no idea when the next vision would show, and I certainly did not want to go through it alone again.

And then there were all the questions I had. For every thought I had, there seemed to be a thousand doubts that went with it. I've never been a know it all, but I don't believe that I have felt as lost I did then. I glanced at the clock that hung on the wall by the painting.

She had given me an hour, and only half of it had passed by the time I was finished.

At least time was always steady. I spent a moment considering myself carefully in front on the mirror. The new outfit was similar to my old one, except that instead of jeans I wore shorts. I kept my hair down, tucking my bangs behind my ears. I breathed deeply and headed out to find the young masters.

Silence overwhelmed the elaborately embellished corridors as I carefully made my way down them, tiptoeing at some points to avoid detection from some unknown force. The paintings of landscapes seemed to open up and swallow the lonely halls along with me. The solemn eyed people portrayed followed me as I would my way through their home. I was paranoid, I admit, but when you're in a stranger's house you can never be too paranoid.

At least, I thought so.

I didn't exactly know where "downstairs" was so all I could do is wander around until I found a staircase. It would have been easier if they had some sort of directory, like at the mall. I mean, we had one at my house. Shouldn't everyone?

Of course, they had to have a directory. What self-respecting millionaire didn't? The new goal blazed in my head, and I quickened my pace to locate it faster. After ten minutes my search didn't yield a map. Instead I found a flight of stairs.

Glancing around for people, I took the steps carefully, attempting to keep myself from shaking myself down the steps. I struggled to keep my emotions under control. Well, mostly it was the nausea wanting to take hold. Obviously, it would not be a good thing to have a panic attack while on an inclined surface.

The polished marble floors at the bottom didn't help me by showing my queasy reflection. To my left I spotted a white pair of double doors. On the right was wide entryway that led to an enormous wood front door. The only way to go was through the doors.

Putting on my brave face, I breathed in deeply and stepped toward them. Although they towered over me, it didn't surprise me that they opened easily. Inside the room was completely white. There were large windows with see-through drapes covering them haphazardly. It was a bright, beautiful room indeed, but not the dining room—just a living room.

I crossed the living room without inspecting it too much; it was grand all right, but it didn't impress me. Farther on open French doors invited me into another hallway. I followed it to the end. It led to a wonderfully lit dining room, with a chandelier suspended from the vaulted ceiling. I assumed that this was the place and I still had ten minutes to spare. Then I noticed the small purple sphere sitting on the far of the table.

I couldn't keep control the anger that seeped through me at the sight of her. Zorano was here all along, instead of helping me at my time of greatest need! I was at wits' end, and she was calmly lounging around a stranger's house, as if there was nothing wrong! Of all the selfish things she'd ever done, this had to take the cake.

I wanted to scream and yell and cry at the same time. My breathing was shallow, and my vision was gone. I realized that another stupid vision was taking over. No way. I was far too enraged to let a dumb glimpse of the future distract me from speaking my mind to Zorano. I heard dull shouts, and saw a pair of infuriated green eyes. I used all the anger in me as an energy source. I pulled it around me to close off the sight I was seeing, to surround myself in the intense resentment, not in the peek of what may come.

It took a while, but I regained my vision, while my clenched fists flexed. My jaw was locked, and I shot daggers at the Bakugan through my eyes. She shifted slightly to her left, almost to look at me. She knew I was here and was ignoring me. This only fueled the rage within. I found my voice, and I willed it not to tremble, angry or not.

"Zorano," I managed to say without screaming. The Darkus Bakugan turned expectantly. So she was just waiting for me to make the first move then? Fine, I'd play along. "Where have you been?" I asked bitterly, eyes narrowed.

"Wouldn't you like to know," she replied in the same tone.

"Actually, I would. So if you don't mind, how about explaining to me just what the heck is going on!" She hopped across the table, halting in front of me.

"Maybe you should be more grateful. Had it been up to me, I would have left you in that despicable alley! You humans don't appreciate anything," she shouted at me, jumping occasionally to get in my face.

"How about treating me like a person!" I retorted, my face becoming warm with the emotion. "I'm always to blame! I always mess up—" Zorano cut me off.

"Yes, you are the problem here! I'm glad you finally realize it!" I shook my head, disgusted.

"Things aren't right, and you know it Zorano!" I replied firmly, keeping my eye contact steady. Someone cleared their throat behind us. I jumped, startled, spinning around to face the intruder. I met six pairs of wide eyes and dropped jaws.

Oops. Had they heard all of that? And more importantly, why hadn't I sensed them there? Yes, things were definitely worse than they'd appeared at first. My ability was completely out of control, and Zorano was—

Wait a minute. I took another look at the people standing in the doorway. Weren't they the ones that had found me in the alley? What were they doing here? Then I remembered that I didn't know where I was, so they probably did.

"Say hello to the one and only Nicole Adams," my Bakugan introduced sardonically.

The one that appeared to be the leader stepped forward, with a friendly grin on his face. He didn't appear to notice the obvious dislike in her voice. He went on to introduce everyone, but Zorano's inattention meant that she'd gone through this already. Exactly how much had I missed?

I maintained a polite smile on my face while he talked, but it slowly faded as I detected the curious and fearful stares most of them gave me. There was that boy again—the quiet one. Shun. He didn't stare like the rest. His golden gaze looked more accusatory than questioning. I realized that I was staring at him too, so I returned to look at Dan.

"Your complexion appears rather pale," noted Marucho.

"Yeah, looks like you've seen a ghost," added Preyas, bouncing on his shoulder. Next thing I knew I was being ushered into a chair, and presented with a plate loaded with food.

"Oh, yeah! Breakfast time! Let's eat," commanded Dan. I heard a few sighs at his comment, but everyone sat down, eating in silence. Everyone's Bakugan were placed in front of them, as if keeping guard. Zorano was the only one that remained near the edge of the table.

That deep resentment returned with the thought of Zorano. It didn't take a genius to conclude that she knew what was going on. She'd teamed up with these people for Pete's sake! It hurt a little knowing that she trusted them more than me, but not enough to provoke an onslaught of emotion. There was no point in getting emotional for her. She wasn't worth it.

What this did indicate, though, was that I'd have to work with Dan's team to have my questions answered. They already had an image for me. I was uncooperative, hotheaded, and irresponsible. That's what I gathered from the glances I continued to receive from those present at the table.

I couldn't appreciate the delicious food that was set before me when I ate. I didn't taste it, or even feel full after the plate was empty. It had to have been three days at least, right? I finished before everyone, and excused myself only to be taken by Kato back into the ample living room.

I sighed audibly, waiting for the host. Minutes later the sound Dan's voice carried through the hallway.

"… has to be the best meal I've ever had!" he exclaimed.

"Oh please Dan; you say that about every meal," replied Runo, clearly annoyed.

"Well, it's true! Man, Marucho that is one of the things I love best about your place. Besides the totally tricked out bathrooms, of course," he complimented, as Julie laughed in her high-pitched voice.

Wait. Dan didn't own this place? I hadn't really wondered as to who the proprietor was because I'd assumed it was Dan. He led, he owned. It surprised me that the small kid had the power to the mansion. It was hilarious actually, imagining Marucho sitting at a desk, writing important business letters. I laughed. I gasped, and quickly covered my mouth with my hand. Marucho entered first, leading the way, I assumed.

"I hope you are finding your stay here pleasurable, Nicole," he greeted politely.

"Yes, thank you. I'm not sure what has happened, but—" I hesitated, eyeing their reactions—"I'm grateful for everything you may have done for me." I spotted Zorano in Dan's open palm, causing me to add, "And for Zorano as well."

"Don't worry about it," stated Dan cheerfully. "I have a feeling you'll be sticking around, so we might as well be friends."

"That'd be great! I adore your hair, and your sense of style," gushed Julie. She was air headed, but she had good intentions. I nodded, smiling. Everything was great. Nothing had gone wrong. It wasn't as serious as I'd first thought. All of them were really at ease.

"So what happened?" I asked equally optimistic. And just like that, a dark atmosphere clouded the once happy room. The group exchanged nervous glances, even Dan, the confident one. I tried to not let it get to me by taking deep, even breaths.

"We should first explain the events in Vestroia," said Joe softly. "Wayvern?" he asked, encouraging her to begin. She looked at me, then at Zorano. I didn't know how much she was aware of, but it has to surpass my knowledge.

"What's Vestroia?" I asked immediately.

"Vestroia is another world entirely. It is the place where all Bakugan come from. Our home," responded Drago.

"Another world?" I repeated dumbly.

"Yes," began Wayvern, "Vestroia revolved around two cores that maintained balance. The Infinity Core controlled positive energy and the Silent Core was negative." At the sound of this I felt warm and then suddenly cold, though I did not know why. I couldn't help interrupting.

"Revolv_ed_? Maintain_ed_? This isn't happening anymore?"

"No, unfortunately, it is not. My brother Naga wanted power; he could not keep himself from the power that emanated from the Silent Core. Naga overtook it and became one with the core." I gasped and felt another chill go through me; such an imbalance of power couldn't bring about anything good. Tigrerra sensed this and confirmed my thoughts.

"Yes, with the balance out of order, Vestroia began to collapse upon itself."

"The Bakugan then came to this world, looking for a solution," added Skyress. I decided to reiterate just to make sure I had everything straight.

"Okay, so you're saying that Naga took one core filled with negative power. But if it took both of them to keep balance, what would make him think that he'd be able to control one?"

"She's quite an intelligent human," I heard Skyress remark to Shun. I ignored this, thinking of what one could gain from having only half of the power. If I wanted to be truly dominant, I wouldn't settle for half, especially when the two halves worked together. Then it hit me that she hadn't mentioned the Infinity Core.

Another rush of warmth filled me, and I embraced the feeling to dispel the cold that had been there before. Hadn't she said something about it in the alley? What was it?

"_The Infinity Core is leaving me!"_ Yes, that was it. But that implied that the core had been in Wayvern's possession. Where was it now? Nobody made an effort to answer my previous question. I posed my inquiry again.

"He… Naga realized that with only one core, he was not able to control the power. This made him go after the other as well," answered Gorem in a deep rumbling voice. He turned to Wayvern.

"The change in the dimensions caused the Infinity Core to travel here like the Bakugan. I followed it, and took it into myself," she concluded.

"But, in the alley, you said that it was leaving. Where exactly did it go?" I forced myself to ask, the dread building in me.

"Hang on. We aren't done yet," Marucho put in. There was more to the story? What could've happened?

"You see, these events were the ones who took place five years ago. History has repeated itself," Skyress explained. I closed my eyes for a second. Five years ago, Zorano wasn't my partner. She was with someone else back then.

"Okay, so what exactly made history repeat itself?" I asked, wanting the whole story. It was Drago who spoke next.

"I had become the Perfect Core after defeating Naga. However, over time, he was reborn due to the core's energy. Instead of wanting to take over the dimensions, he now wants the cores to destroy them." So, they began telling me about Smash World and the Smashers. I kept my focus most of the time. After all, who could ignore the fact that video game characters were real?

"So, Naga managed to disappear somewhere here on Earth. Who knows what he's planning," Wayvern finished. After soaking in the information, I asked again.

"So… Where _is_ the core?" I had the horrible premonition that I knew where it was. Again, they all looked at each other, as if wanting to hide the truth.

"Will someone tell her already? I won't do it because she won't believe me," stated Zorano aloud. Silence. "Don't worry about her fainting again. She's hit her head before plenty of times." This time, Shun spoke in a low, clear voice.

"You have it. The Infinity Core is within your body." I stared blankly back at them. I had the core? Why? I hadn't noticed any side effects, so maybe it would be okay…

Except that Naga was after me. He wanted it, and if I had to be eliminated for him to succeed, so be it. Despair came back to me full force. I fell to my knees, gasping for air. Momentarily, I felt arms pulling me up, but it didn't last long. I glimpsed to see concerned looks from their faces before looking up and seeing _his_ eyes. James.

**He glared at me, and I felt the anguish more strongly than before. He stepped away from me and into a hazy horizon. Everyone at my side shouted angrily at him, and then he beckoned to me. I wanted to follow, but what about them? I felt a hand lock around my wrist, keeping me from him. I fought and struggled, but arms enclosed me. I had to go to him. James.**

"… happened? Are you okay?" Dan screamed into my face. I found myself sitting on the white sofa. I focused my eyesight on him again, and then shook my head, taking in everyone's alarmed expressions.

"This is strange. The energy from her for that moment doubled from the levels it was at before," Drago commented, troubled. "Tell me, Nicole, what did you experience?" I warily steadied my breathing before replying,

"I think it's time for me to tell my story now. There should be no secrets in a team."

Although I'd had more than my fair share of surprises for a day, it didn't make the shock set in as I might've preferred. It would have been better than feeling every emotion so acutely and knowing that anything I might throw their way would only have the same effect. Each one of us—and most recently me-was all too aware of the reality than so few adults knew. And still, there were more unknowns that, much to my dislike, centered on me. That is what the crew around me wished to solve: the mysteries that I'd brought upon them.

Most everyone followed Dan's lead when he sat on the white couch, except Shun. He opted to stand indifferently by one of the large windows. They waited expectantly to hear my side of the weird happenings. I wasn't exactly sure where to begin. Should I start from the beginning when I'd first decided to come to Wardington? It'd probably be better to tell them of my power before that, though. And how much was I willing to tell? Did I want them to know about him?

"So, let's hear it," Dan prompted, eager as usual. He didn't concern them, but it had to do with Bakugan.

"Oh, I can't wait for it. I just love a good story," commented a giddy Preyas.

"Please, Preyas, she isn't going to continue unless we're quiet," chided Marucho.

"Oh, sorry," he replied, still jumping anxiously on the boy's shoulder. I cleared my throat to buy me some time to get my thoughts together. No, they wouldn't know about him. I started off vaguely to gauge their reactions.

"First, I think you should know about me. I'm not normal."

"Big deal. What is normal, anyway?" Runo commented, giving me a friendly smile. Okay, so no one here could be described as ordinary, but compared to them I was a freak. And I told them so with a wry smile. This earned me a mixed looks of surprise, sympathy, and confusion. It was Julie that spoke up first.

"Oh, don't say that. Everyone has things that make them different. So what if you have a power source from another dimension? It's perfectly normal—" She didn't finish the sentence, realizing that she wasn't helping.

"You don't understand. It's the truth when I say that. Ever since I can remember, I've had an ability that has set me apart from everyone else. I don't know if there are others like me, but I know it shouldn't be this way." I paused, hoping that Zorano wouldn't decide to put in her two cents. "Up until a couple days ago, I could sense things before they'd happen."

"You could see the future?" Shun asked with obvious skepticism.

"Wow, could you tell me my fortune?" Julie asked, ecstatic.

"No, and no." I answered, a bit irritated with her scatterbrained personality. "I couldn't actually see anything. It was more like a premonition—I _felt_ something before it happened." Everyone stared, a confused look on their faces. Fortunately, Joe's eyes lit up with understanding.

"Oh, so it was kind of like a gut feeling that happened fairly often." I nodded with excitement.

"Yeah, it was exactly like that! And it happened all the time. I couldn't control when I was going to get these impulses."

"Although that is interesting, I still don't understand why this would have anything to do with us," stated Tigrerra.

"Yes, and that still does not explain why the core chose to go to her," Gorem added.

"I'm not sure why myself, but—" I began before Zorano interrupted me.

"Of course _you_ wouldn't know, so why don't you let me explain," she asked with carefully guarded menace that no one would detect unless they were really looking for it.

"Alright, go ahead," I answered with just as much restraint.

"Even before she held the core, Nicole had an obvious Vestroia-like energy about her. That's probably what led you to her in the first place." I did? How come I didn't know about this? It figures that she kept the most important facts from me, as always. If she'd told me that in the first place, I might've listened to her and stayed on the docks.

"I still don't understand," remarked Skyress.

"She didn't know that she was giving off this energy, but Bakugan did. Not only that, but the energy seemed to spike every time she sensed something," Zorano continued. Again, why hadn't Zorano told me anything in the time we'd known each other? Would I not understand? Had it just not been worth mentioning? I made a mental note to myself to call Zorano out on this one later.

"Yes, there were sudden bursts of energy coming from her in the alley. It seemed to overwhelm the entire vicinity," Drago realized.

"That would mean that her energy would have been temporarily more powerful than that of any of you Bakugan," Marucho deduced.

"Yes, the power resembled that of the Silent Core," Wayvern added. I felt cold set into my bones. "That would have been why the core chose to go to you. Your energy overcame mine."

"It's strange for a human to mimic this energy. Do you know why it happens?" Skyress asked curiously. Even her partner turned to me for an answer. Too bad I didn't have one.

"I'm sorry. I don't know myself. Like I said, I've always been like this."

"Okay, so one mystery down, or at least half," Joe said cheerfully. Then he looked thoughtfully at me. "So, Drago mentioned earlier that your energy spiked again. Do you mind telling us what you felt?"

"I felt anxiety and loneliness," I replied automatically.

"No, I meant what your hunch was," he clarified, still grinning amiably. Man, that was creeping me out.

"Oh I'm sorry. I just assumed…" I trailed off, embarrassed. I quickly shook that off as my face turned bright red. "Well, that's the next thing I wanted to tell you guys about."

"Go on," Runo encouraged.

"Yeah, this keeps getting better by the minute!" exclaimed Diablo.

"Well, ever since the…the core" —it felt awkward referring since it was within me- "I haven't sensed things anymore."

"But what about the spike that Drago was talking about?" asked Dan, confused. I held up a hand to stop him.

"Let me finish. I haven't sensed things. Instead I-I've been seeing things."

"Hallucinating?" Shun asked a bit cynically. As much as it would have made my day to answer with my own snide comment, I couldn't muster the courage to do so. Instead, I refused to meet his gaze and calmly said,

"No, I've actually been seeing things. And I saw you telling me about this whole mess, except that it didn't go exactly as I had seen it." In the vision, Dan had been begging me to believe him, I now realized, but it hadn't happened that way for some reason. I debated whether or not to tell them about the most recent vision. I don't think it would be pertinent, considering that Zorano would probably hate me even more if she knew I'd seen him in my future. I continued without mentioning it. "It seems like every time I feel a strong emotion, I see something related to it."

"So you saw something when the energy spiked?" Drago clarified. I nodded. "That is odd indeed. With the core, your usual ability has disappeared and manifested itself in visions." A silence settled over us, everyone seemingly consumed in their own thoughts. I couldn't really say that I was looking forward to this face off against Naga.

My power to see the future hadn't shown me anything particularly enticing as of yet. And from what I'd gathered, Naga was ruthless and even after his sister. The energy I supposedly emitted wasn't more powerful than Wayvern's _all_ the time, so how could I promise to keep the core safe? Another concern was that everyone else appeared to have a strong bond with their Bakugan as opposed to Zorano and me. Worry.

**A map was portrayed on the screen in the extravagant room. It was Wardington and some triangles headed toward the tower from all directions. A creeping anxiety washed over me, and the picture zoomed in on the shapes, showing what appeared to be Bakugan. They were different from any I'd ever seen, and they had twisted grins on their faces. They were coming for me. **

"Are you alright, Nicole?" asked a concerned Marucho.

"She has seen something again," announced Tigrerra. I stared back blankly at him, my thoughts on the scene that had played out before me. With growing apprehension, I decided to ask about it.

"How far away is the tower?" With a confused expression, Joe answered,

"It isn't too far, just a couple of blocks from here."

"Those Bakugan were loose on the streets, heading this way!" I blurted out.

"What Bakugan?" questioned Dan fiercely. I gasped and met everyone's gaze at least once.

"They aren't supposed to be moving freely in this dimension, are they?" I realized with dread.

"No, but since the merge of our two worlds, many things have gone wrong. We Bakugan should not be here in the first place," informed Skyress. I sighed.

"This is insane," I admitted quietly, then added more loudly, "But there's nothing I can do to change any of this now. In the vision, I was looking at a map of the city and there were some strange Bakugan heading toward the tower. Two of the Bakugan were green and blue and black and coming from the ocean, while another two were orange and brown and black heading here from land."

"That sounds like Shadow Hairadee and Shadow Tayghen!" shouted Shun.

"Yeah, and Shadow Tricloid and Shadow Rabeeter!" added Runo.

"You know who they are?" I asked surprised. Nobody bothered to answer my question since Marucho motioned for everyone to follow him. He led the way up to a large high-tech map, presumably the one from my vision. He pulled up a map that showed the city and all its surroundings in perfect detail. Sure enough, the ones known as Shadow Rabeeter, Shadow Tricloid, Shadow Hairadee, and Shadow Tayghen popped up on the screen. Of course, I had no idea which was which, but they all seemed equally angry.

"We have to get to the tower. From there we can see everything that is going on and plan our next moves better." Dan decided firmly. His group and their Bakugan nodded with the same determination. I laughed nervously.

"Go? Out there?"

**Now that Nicole has gotten to know the Brawlers, it seems that she may be pushed into a battle? How will she fare? Find out later.**

**Oh! I have news! The results are in for the contest! I…! Didn't win. Ah well, at least I tried, right? That's what counts. Now, galactic commander neptune, you better not say anything mean to her! Apparently, she's putting all of the entries on her backup penname's favorite list. So it's all good!**


	61. Stepping Up

**Dang! Only three more chapters to go after this! I can't believe I got so far. I'm sorry for being a day late. We had a three day power outage over here. Well, enough about me. It's time for Review Response!**

**alxkend: Yep! They just don't know when to quit!**

**PEJP Bengtzone: Well, you'll just have to see till the end.**

**Pikana: The Smashers are still in Smash World. They are going to show up near the end of Ch. 64. As for Nicole, you'll find out what happens to her ability later on.**

**brave kid: Thank you.**

Why? Why? WHY?

It would have been safer inside. Sure, Naga and the battle were _outside_, but did we actually have to go there? Especially me. I held the Infinity Core. I had to be protected, right?

It really sucked that none of them heard my brilliant arguments, though, because by the time I'd thought of them, we were already overlooking the extensive city from the observatory point of Wardington Tower. I felt bad for Dan and Shun, since they had to all but drag me halfway here—my knees were jelly. The other half of the way I mustered up some courage to pull myself forward just to get Zorano to stop snickering.

My Bakugan, as usual, wasn't helping the situation any. After she had scoffed at me for having to be led, she grudgingly perched on my shoulder as I shook on the way up the tower. The two girls, and Joe with that disturbing smile of his, tried to encourage me by acting like tour guides. They drew my attention to points of interest.

Well, Preyas pretty much dominated all conversation from Runo's shoulder—Marucho had stayed behind to configure some things with Kato. I appreciated them attempting to help me out, but at the same time, I felt uncomfortable seeing everyone feigning smiles for me.

All the mixed feelings disappeared, though, when I stood at the top of the tower. It felt so amazing to see everything 360 degrees around me while being on terra firma. A small, hopeful smile graced my lips. That is, until the others crowded around me and started formulating plans to take down the henchmen. Marucho joined us shortly, a bit out of breath since he had run the entire way.

"I think Shun should take Shadow Tayghen," Marucho said.

"Don't worry. I'll do it." Shun threw the sphere, and it glowed with a brilliant green light. A magnificent bird with a sharp beak and long feathers emerged. Some hung down like a tail, but each looked as if it could cut through just about anything. Shun leaped onto her back expertly, and they took off to the harbor.

"Alright guys, that leaves three more to take care of," Dan said, holding up his hand to demonstrate the number.

"Oh! I'll go after Shadow Tricloid, since she tried to hurt you two," Julie declared, _almost_ succeeding in sounding threatening. I smiled. "Let's go, Gorem!" Like Shun, she tossed her Bakugan, and his silhouette materialized in orange light. Gorem was a warrior and as tall as the tower itself. His body was covered in armor, and a shield was attached to his right arm. Gorem extended his right hand toward us, and Julie hopped on.

"Julie!" Dan called to her. "Be careful!" It was then that their Bakupods beeped. A girl showed up on the screen.

"Alice!" they shouted in unison.

"Hey, guys. Listen, I'm better now, so I'll handle Shadow Rabeeter," the girl said. Her hair was orange and everyone seemed to be ecstatic to see her.

"Do you need any help?" asked Runo in a worried tone.

"No, I think I'll manage. I have Hydranoid, after all." She turned to look behind her. "Okay, wish me luck!" Everyone pitched in their well wishes, and their screens went blank. Joe quickly explained to me that Alice was a brawler, too, but she hadn't believed always believed she was one. She was also Shun's girlfriend, even though it seemed nigh impossible. I didn't question him any further because I didn't feel it was my place. Dan's watch went off again.

"Dan, there are other Bakugan headed our way!" It was Marucho. Through Runo's Bakupod I could see two figures, both red and black and purple, dashing at high speeds.

"It is Shadow Centorrior and Shadow Druman!" exclaimed Drago.

"Aw, snap! Those two are tough! Drago and I had a hard time battling them. One of us can't go alone."

"I'll go with you, Dan," volunteered Runo with determination.

"Are you sure? The two are the strongest out of all of them."

"I'll go with you as well," Joe added. Wayvern agreed immediately. I had a hunch that she just wanted to follow Drago and fight beside him as Runo did with Dan. He looked to Marucho.

"All that leaves is Shadow Hairadee. You good to go, Marucho?" Dan asked before leaving.

"I'll take care of him. Don't worry about it." He answered, having a determined frown. I stood there shocked, as those events occurred. Marucho was wearing a determined frown? That had to be the act of a higher force. I guess things were really serious.

"What about Nicole?" Joe pointed to me and glanced at their —okay, _our_- leader. "We can't just leave her unguarded. It's too dangerous."

"You're right, Joe, but if Shadow Centorrior and Shadow Druman are here then Naga must be close behind them. We can't take her with us." Runo said. "She should go with Marucho."

"Yeah, you're a strategic battler, and it'll only be Hairadee there." Dan added.

"Yes, she shall come with us. We will protect her with our lives," Angelo consented before the boy could reply. With that said, Dan summoned Drago, jumping on board with Runo right beside him. His Bakugan was large and covered in red scales with a huge wingspan. A massive horn stuck out from his head, and his razor sharp teeth gleamed in the sunlight. Joe also brought out Wayvern, another large dragon creature but this time white and not as menacing looking.

"Keep the core safe," she said as the two flew off in the direction of the two approaching Bakugan. I nodded as firmly as I could and glanced at Marucho.

"I feel bad for you. Nicole is completely useless. She doesn't even have any Ability Cards with her," Zorano remarked to Marucho, Preyas, and Angelo. My face burned with embarrassment, but it's not like I could deny it. And seeing as no one had taken the elevator away from the tower, things were about to get worse.

"You don't?" he asked me, looking puzzled. As I was about to answer, I felt a finger tap my shoulder. It was Kato.

"Excuse me, Miss Adams, but Master Marucho asked me to give you these." He bowed and placed a Bakupod and a belt with a card holder in my hands.

"T-thank you, but—"

"There's no time to waste. Let's move! We'll go on Angelo," Marucho decided before I could say anything else, like the fact that I'd never battled before in my life. "Angelo, stand!" In a swirling vortex of blue light, the small ball expanded into a tall white humanoid creature with wings.

"At your service, Master Marucho," he said, bowing humbly while floating just outside the guard rails.

"Thank you, Angelo." Marucho jumped on Angelo with Preyas still on his shoulder. I'd never seen a Preyas in full size, but I had to admit that it was an amazing species. I was still fiddling with the belt.

"Hurry up," hastened Zorano.

"Okay, I'm finished," I told her exasperatedly. '_Yes, things are definitely worse_,' I thought and stared uncertainly at Angelo's huge form floating in the sky.

"We'd like to get to the battle _today_," Zorano commented snidely. I climbed onto the Bakugan, trying desperately not to look down. My hands tangled themselves in his feathers, and I took deep breaths to stabilize myself. Marucho stood effortlessly beside me, gazing at me with one eyebrow raised. I felt my hold on consciousness loosen. "Get a grip, will you?"

Then Angelo took off at max velocity. The wind rushed past me, and I buried my face in the feathers. What if we fell? I must have looked strange to him, curled into a ball, eyes squeezed shut, but I didn't worry about that. Fear dominated every thought, and images of falling flashed through my mind. Who would catch us if something went wrong?

**My body was paralyzed, eyes locked on the figure tearing through the sky toward me. If I didn't do something, I'd be done for. The core would be gone. I'd have let everyone down. Marucho couldn't stop him. Not alone. **_**I**_** was on my own, wasn't I?**

"… wrong with her, Marucho!" Angelo told him, distressed. A hand clamped down on my shoulder and shook me. Eyes still closed, I felt the wind stop blowing, and I was picked up and placed on the ground. I opened them once I felt the earth beneath my feet.

Marucho stood at a distance from me and looked in the opposite direction, though I couldn't see what he was staring at.

"You should have told me you were afraid of flying," he stated.

"Couldn't you tell? She was about to pass out on the way here," my Bakugan pointed out.

"Yeah, I figured that much out," he responded. "Heads up, Angelo. There he is." And truly, there he was, still quite a distance away, but he was there. Shadow Hairadee. Long green and black tentacles protruded from his head, but didn't manage to cover his pointy ears. The sick smirk on his face hadn't changed. His eyes were blood red, and he had some sort of green armor on.

"Ready to battle?" he asked all of us.

"Yes, we must make our two worlds safe once again," Angelo answered. I made eye contact with him, the doubt as obvious as my fear of flying.

"Um, about that…"

* * *

"What do you mean you've never battled before?" Marucho asked me in an accusatory tone, deep sapphire eyes staring me down. Shadow Hairadee was temporarily forgotten, and his attention was completely on me, which didn't help at all.

"Zorano wasn't mine until recently, and that's why I didn't have any cards with me." I mumbled. My eyes averted to the old wooden buildings surrounding us so as to not meet his gaze.

He thought about this, eyes locked on the intruder again as I took a chance and looked at him out of the corner of my eye. My explanation hadn't been very thorough, and honestly, it was just an excuse. I _really_ did not want to battle. Marucho turned to me again.

"Alright then, stay behind me and think about how to use those cards Kato gave you. You've seen a battle, right?" I nodded. What else could I do? Either way, Angelo, Preyas, and Marucho weren't going to let me out of their sights, so I might as well be useful. Zorano jumped impatiently on my shoulder.

I knew she was just itching to comment on how badly this was going to turn out to with me here, but for the moment, she kept her trap shut.

"Good. Get ready, Angelo. Bakugan, brawl! Preyas, stand!" This time, a bluish lizard humanoid jumped out. The two turned to face us, since they'd been focused on Hairadee as well and he was rapidly closing in.

"You'll do just fine, Nicole. Marucho and I will protect you," Angelo assured me. I managed to fake a smile. I wanted to ask how they were going to protect me and fight him, but Zorano beat me to it.

"You three are going to have your hands full with Shadow Hairadee alone. Are you sure you want to bother so much with Nicole?"

"Are you not planning on joining the battle?" Marucho asked her, again accusing. Zorano scoffed.

"I don't have any ties to humans like so many other fellow Bakugan do."

'That's a lie,' I thought. She may not have ties to me, but there was someone else. Marucho narrowed his eyes, preparing for a comeback, but a strong gust of wind suddenly blew over us, cutting his sentence short.

From seemingly every direction, ice rained down, quickly enveloping a few of the adjacent buildings. Marucho pushed me back and out of harm's way. A little more to the left and I could've been nailed! And how was someone so short so strong?!

"Well, what do we have here?" My head snapped up just in time to see Shadow Hairadee hovering above us as he spoke in a mocking tone. "Angelo, Preyas, and their human? Is that the best the Brawlers could do?" He snorted, and following Marucho's orders, I hid behind him, trying to keep myself out of Hairadee's view.

"Don't hide, human!" he yelled unexpectedly, and I froze. He closed in on us. "I can clearly see that you're there." This would have been a good time for Marucho to pull off a surprise attack, since he was so close, but instead he just glared. Our opponent smirked back, but then his eyes —trained on me- widened, and the smirk grew larger. "You're the one with the core? Ha, this is easier than I thought! We don't have to go through a Bakugan to get it, and there is only a single Brawler protecting it!" He laughed menacingly.

"That is enough, Hairadee. To get to her, you'll have to go through me!" Angelo shouted at him, blocking me with a wing.

"Please, Angelo, you're facing the greatest Bakugan warrior that Naga has! You can't defeat me. Last time I let you win, but it won't be like that today! I don't mind taking you or your human out!" His lifted his hand, open palm visible. "Shadow Cryst—"

"Feather Blast!" A high-pitched voice called out, interrupting Hairadee's attack and bombarding him from behind with feathers. He grunted and scanned his surroundings, spotting a flash of green zooming past him.

"Hey there, you two!" greeted the small winged girl who now floated next to Angelo. It was obvious she was a Ventus Bakugan, if her wild green and yellow hair and her Harpy-like appearance were any indication.

"Harpus! Man, am I glad to see you, girl!" Preyas cheered. A young boy with tan skin and a hat ran toward us.

"Komba? What are you two doing here?" he asked, puzzled.

"Master Shun told us to help you," he answered with a huge smile on his face. He threw a confused glance at me, which I reciprocated. Shadow Hairadee, who had since recovered from the sudden attack, seemed unfazed.

"Big deal! Another Bakugan won't make a difference." I don't think he'd notice the Darkus Bakugan settled on my shoulder. I turned to look at Zorano, only to discover she wasn't there. "Shadow Crystal Missiles!" Ice shards crackling with black lightning flew out from his palm. Angelo, acting quickly, flew between us and the shards, blocking them with him winged arms wrapped around himself like a cocoon. Where the heck had she gone to?

Marucho, too absorbed in the enemy, didn't pay attention to me frantically searching for my Bakugan.

"Nice job, Preyas! Now get ready, Hairadee. Blue Stea—"

"Not so fast, human! Dark Shadow Aggressor!" In the blink of an eye, Hairadee had disappeared, leaving Marucho and Angelo no openings for an assault. A small ball rolled in front of Harpus, evidently attempting an escape. Zorano.

Without thinking I ran forward, every fiber in my being focused on retrieving Zorano. I dashed past both Ventus and Aquos Bakugan, ignoring the ice coating the ground and gently picked up Zorano.

"What do you think you're—" she began, infuriated.

"Nicole!" Marucho yelled, and I remembered the present danger: Shadow Hairadee and his invisibility. He materialized in front of me, arm extended to grab me. Again, Marucho darted to my side and jumped quickly onto Angelo, who took off into the sky. I clutched Zorano tightly, trying to put together a plan in my head _and_ fight off nausea.

'The cards,'I thought. That's exactly what I could use to help them out because Shadow Hairadee seemed to have more than his fair share of tricks up his sleeve. I tried to pull them out, but I had to open my eyes to examine them, which I couldn't do while flying. Marucho noticed this and that Hairadee wasn't following us.

"We have to land. She might faint if we keep her up here any longer," he told his Bakugan. He complied and landed on top of a building, giving us a bird's eye view of the place. No Shadow Hairadee to be seen, just the other boy and Harpus coming our way. "What were you thinking back there?" he questioned, grabbing me by the shoulders forcefully. I shook my head, not answering. Instead I focused on maintaining my composure and fighting off an oncoming vision.

"Marucho, he took off after you!" Komba informed him, out of breath.

"But he wasn't behind us. Did you see him, Angelo?" I opened my eyes to make sure he wasn't around.

"I did not, Master Marucho. He might be using his Dark Shadow Aggressor. We will have to wait and see." It was eerily silent for a moment, and I let my guard down, loosening my grip on Zorano. She immediately leaped from my hands, off the building, and onto the ground.

"Zorano! Get back here!" I yelled, climbing off after her.

"Hey, shouldn't you be sticking with us? I mean, you do have the core and all," Harpus reminded me matter-of-factly. Her partner stared back at her wide-eyed.

"Marucho, we've gotta go after her," Komba concluded, climbing down by the time Marucho had reached me. He was fast for a shorty.

"Don't you ever learn? We don't know where Shadow Hairadee went, so you can't just run off alone," he scolded, keeping a hand around my wrist to make sure I didn't leave.

"Zorano keeps running away," I replied, lifting her to eye level. I couldn't believe her at times. I doubt there was anything that mattered to her anymore.

"Just let me leave, Nicole. I have better things to do than—"

"Than save both our worlds?" Marucho finished, a fierce look etched onto his handsome face.

"Yes," she responded coldly. Komba ran to us, exhausted, but determined to join our frigid conversation. An icy chuckle penetrated the tension created by Zorano's selfishness.

"You know, with friends like that, who needs enemies?" Hairadee stood atop another building, but his smirk was one of triumph this time.

"Harpus," Komba lifted a card, "Feather Storm!"

"Pathetic," he answered, brushing it away. "This is real power. Shadow Crystal Jail!" Ice bars formed a cage around Angelo, Preyas, and Harpus, hindering any attack or escape.

"Marucho!" Preyas shouted.

"Hang on. Blue Stealth!" he threw a blue-glowing card at the enclosure, but it bounced back. "What happened?" he asked Komba and me.

"My Shadow Crystal Jail nullifies any of your abilities. Now you humans are easy pickings," Hairadee announced in a sinister tone. Zorano, struggling against me the entire time, suddenly stopped.

"Oh no, Harpus! Try to get out!" Komba yelled to her.

"I'm trying okay!" Marucho lowered his head and glanced over to a fountain nearby.

"Oh, that's it. Aquos!" I watched in total confusion as a blue symbol appeared on the back of his left hand. It was the symbol for Aquos. "By the power of the Aquos Guardian!" The symbol shone brightly as I tried to piece together the situation. Just what did he mean? "Ocean Armor!"

Zorano seemed to be shell-shocked like I was as the water from the fountain surrounded him, raising him into the air before it solidified. It seemed like he had boots that raised him to match my height, and he also had what looked like battle gloves.

Marucho jumped up, heading straight for Hairadee, even though it was crazy to think he could fight him with his bare hands. The enemy shook his head in disgust, easily blowing him away and sending him barreling into one of the weakened structures. Komba inadvertently barreled into the building with him in an attempt to catch him.

And then there was one.

Shadow Hairadee came at me in a blur, the wind slicing past his sleek, angled form. Never much of an optimist, I didn't see any other way out of my predicament besides, you know, _dying_. And that probably went hand in hand with losing the core. Running was out of the question—he'd catch me in seconds with my back turned. Was I willing to give it up even though I'd promised myself to help them out? No, but no better ideas came to mind at this point.

Time slowed for a moment as my thoughts flickered back to Zorano. Even as my impending doom closed in on me, anger boiled inside of me urging to be let loose on the idiotic Bakugan I had the misfortune to own. She hadn't made any moves to leave again, but the damage was done. I knew. They knew. Hell, the whole world knew! She didn't want to be partnered with me.

**How could I surrender after all the times they'd sacrificed for me? I'd helped but it wasn't enough. Not if I was going to quit now. Not if I allowed him to have his way when I was so close to pulling through. My hands formed fists at my sides and—**

I didn't let this one finish. I was going to make a stand —whether final or not- and Zorano was going to help me. I wasn't giving her a choice. Like I'd seen the others do, I grasped her in the palm of my hand, holding her for only a second before letting her go into the space before me. Acting on impulse, my heart thumped faster as I called out the words I'd heard plenty of times before.

"Zorano, stand!" She'd barely managed some sort of degrading insult aimed at me when a dark purple light consumed the small figure. I grinned, exhilarated at the thought of summoning my first Bakugan. I watched in awe as Zorano grew to her full height, petite when compared to the Bakugan the other Brawlers owned.

A loose plum-colored vest rested over a mauve shirt, a belt cinching them in place, and leggings the same deep color as the vest covered her lower half. Her obsidian skin glowed in the daylight, diverting attention from the cropped silver hair on her head—which barely managed to cover her pointed ears-and stormy grey eyes. She stood on the tips of her toes, barefoot, clawed hands instinctively reaching for the sheath located on her hip.

Shadow Hairadee braked suddenly, a confused expression crawled onto his face, further twisting his horrific set of features.

"What? Where did you come from?" he choked out. I thought I'd heard a quiver in his voice, but his face gave away nothing. Zorano glowered at me, the angled qualities of her small face becoming more pronounced. Our enemy simply shrugged and launched himself at her. I couldn't react, thoughts crossing my mind more slowly than before. She managed to dance out of the way, moving nimbly across the icy terrain. Her advantage didn't last long, though, as Shadow Hairadee again used his Dark Shadow Aggressor.

The Darkus Bakugan glanced about herself, frustrated, until ice shards struck her from behind. Hairadee cackled as she recovered, repeatedly assaulting her with one attack after the next.

"Hey, Nicole!" she yelled at me in between blows. "You put me in this battle, so how about helping out?" I shook my head, trying to get back to my senses.

"Uh," I began ineloquently.

"Hurry!" she bellowed, using a moment of distraction to draw her sword. The long pale lavender blade easily blocked some incoming ice but not all.

My hands shook as I shuffled through the cards. Which one to use? They all looked the same to me, no distinction evidently apparent between any two. I was aware that I was standing out in the open, nothing protecting me and that I'd been gnawing on my lip so much it began to bleed. An explosion sounded from the building the guys had flown into, and I jumped with a shriek, all the cards scattering across the ground.

I cursed under my breath as I bent to pick them up before loud screech of pain —Angelo, Preyas, and Harpus, I recognized immediately- sent me into a panic. I reached out blindly, vaguely hearing Zorano's impatient demands to pick a card.

**This could not be happening. He couldn't possibly be standing right in front of me now. Even as the water sprinkled me, I couldn't believe I was awake. All this time we thought he was gone. Zorano and I —we- oh God he just had to be fake! An illusion! The ground beneath me didn't move, though, and I pinched myself, all to no avail. He didn't disappear and the sobs didn't die. **

For a moment, I froze, wanting to decipher the meaning of the vision, but then Zorano leaped over me, landing behind me as if using me as a shield. I shot her a questioning glance, and she panted and pointed toward the ice jail. Hairadee had been sidetracked by the two Ventus Bakugan, after Harpus insulted him, I assumed, and now he was exacting revenge.

"Why aren't you helping them?" I hissed at Zorano, who was still trying to catch her breath. She didn't look harmed in the least, though. She scowled in return.

"I'm a little busy here. Besides, I can't do much without an ability!" I turned in time to see Hairadee preparing another assault on the battered Bakugan.

"You want an ability? Fine!" I decided, infuriated. Selecting a card at random, I held it up like everyone else had done.

"Finally," she muttered, bouncing after him. _Name?_ I asked myself. And suddenly, without even putting much thought into it, its name popped into my mind. "Copycat," I whispered.

"Shadow Crystal Missiles!"

"Copycat," I repeated, louder. A light shined from the card in my hand and then the blade of Zorano's sword also glowed as sharp ice shards crackling with black lightning flew from it. They intercepted the ones headed toward Angelo, Preyas, and Harpus, some flying farther and penetrating him. He cried out in pain, and I let out an uncharacteristic whoop of joy.

"So the little human wants to play?" he asked. A flash of movement caught my eye, directing my line of sight toward the wrecked building at my right. _Marucho_. I quickly averted my gaze back toward Hairadee so as to not give away their presence. "You got a lucky shot in, but that won't happen again!"

"You don't scare me!" I yelled at him in an effort to seem more threatening than I actually was. Truthfully, the Ventus-Aquos/Shadow Bakugan intimidated me, but Zorano was now backing me up (or so I hoped) and that gave me courage. His wings angled back, and he dived toward Zorano, not me, counting on his Dark Shadow Aggressor to give him an advantage. I chose another card.

"Double Dimension!" I didn't worry about the fact that I initially had no idea what it did. It just felt like the right card. Although Copycat's effect was fairly obvious, this one would have left me stumped had it been any other time. Not now, though. The knowledge instantly took front and center in my mind as if it had always been there. Shadow Hairadee materialized, his form heading straight toward the pointed tip of Zorano's blade.

"What the—" he began before a slash from her sword replaced his words with a howl.

"Double Dimension is an ability that allows me to neutralize an ability used by my opponent," I explained rather smugly. I was getting the hang of this whole brawling thing, and surprisingly, I was _enjoying_ it.

Suddenly, I heard Preyas' name ring out through the area in a hurt, low voice. I turned around to observe Marucho crouching on the roof, bowed over his Guardian Bakugan with what seemed like tears running down his cheeks. Marucho… crying? That couldn't have been right. Why would he cry? He was supposed to be watching over me, being strong because I wasn't. _I_ was the one who felt like breaking down every passing moment because of all the crap that had been going on.

My eyes were still trained on him when a blinding light erupted from behind Harpus, forcing me to turn away. I concentrated instead on the battle at hand, but to my surprise both of the Bakugan had ceased their fight as the glow grew brighter. The light reminded me of that time in the alley, the time the core had buried itself within me.

It was a moment of slight uncertainty, but just as quickly as it had appeared, the light dissipated.

Slowly, my gaze returned to Marucho only to see Shadow Hairadee's Shadow Crystal Jail gone. Angelo gradually took flight again, as did Harpus, but an unknown Bakugan floated beside them. A huge smile graced Marucho's lips as he watched his Bakugan with an elated expression. My feet pulled me forward to meet him as he jumped down to terra firma where another guy was standing.

"That was my Tentaclear's Gamma Ray ability, which allowed me to nullify his ability!" the bald guy yelled. Not only did he lack hair, but he was built. Seriously, this man had to be some sort of bodybuilder judging by the size of his fairly obvious muscles. This was only emphasized by the tight black shirt he wore paired with a white sleeveless jacket. His Bakugan, a free-floating eyeball with tentacles protruding, was Haos.

"Julio!" greeted Komba. "Nice going. You freed Harpus, Angelo, and Preyas." Marucho nodded with that intelligent and polite aura about him, if at least for a bit.

"I greatly appreciate your assistance, Julio!"

"I'm just here to help," he replied modestly. Tentaclear blinked in response. Zorano promptly bounded over to us, giving the other Bakugan a defiant stare while they looked her over. Even Marucho's sapphire eyes widened, his gaze flickering between Zorano and me, visibly doubting my capacity as a Brawler, not that I blamed him.

"Let's finish him off, guys," he declared, whipping out another card. "Gate Card, set!" Shadow Hairadee scoffed at that, his countenance a not-so-surprising leer.

"Just try humans! The only one being finished here is you, and I'll be taking the girl with me."

"Pathetic," Marucho scolded. "Gate Card, open! Hyper Merge!" He crossed his arms with a smirk. "In case you're wondering, Shadow Hairadee, this Gate Card increases our power level by one hundred times the amount of Bakugan on our side and it gets better. Your power will be decreased by the same amount." Our opponent attempted another attack, only resulting in Tentaclear blocking it with ease. I wanted to help, but as I prompted Zorano to enter the fray, Marucho shook his head.

"Combination between Haos and Ventus!" he shouted.

"Feather Edge!" Komba added. I guess when he said 'Let's finish him off guys,' he literally meant _guys_. Harpus' wings radiated like a blade in a blacksmith's workshop, their sharp edges looking just as deadly. Angelo and Harpus were completely aglow in their own aura. Both glided past him, each leaving a deep gash in his body.

The explosion that followed was nothing like one out of a movie. There was no fire or thunderous boom. There was simply light and then sparkles rained down, taking with them every remnant of ice. I cringed, grossed out at the fact that these were tiny pieces of Shadow Hairadee drizzling on us.

The others, however, didn't seem to mind as Komba and Marucho cheered and congratulated each other. Julio looked indignant, fuming because no one seemed to be paying attention to him. I wandered over to Zorano, who appeared distinctly bored. Her quicksilver eyes caught mine.

"I hope you don't expect us to be like them," she warned, sheathing her sword and settling herself onto the ground with her legs crossed.

"No, I don't," I answered honestly, taking a seat beside her. "Thank you, though. I appreciate that you battled with me, even if it was reluctantly." She raised a fine, silver eyebrow, but I saw the corner of her lip twitch upwards.

"Yeah, yeah," she grumbled. I broke out into a ridiculous grin. Though I wouldn't admit it to her face, I was beginning to feel attached to the Darkus Bakugan. And maybe, since Hell happened to be freezing over, she felt the same way about me.

**The tulips danced in formation, each one beckoning me forward. Even the slight breeze flitted warmly. Everything seemed to be in order. The universe was balanced again. **

For those few minutes, sitting next to Zorano, I felt strangely calm, as surprising as that may seem. It was almost as if some power-hungry Bakugan wasn't out to kill me. Almost. Reality caught up with me as Marucho approached, probably bringing bad news. His aqua orbs looked us over before he spoke, a small smile forming.

"You two did well against Shadow Hairadee," he complimented. I raised my eyebrows, and then frowned. Evidently, we didn't, since he didn't let us help out in the end. Zorano, with the ever obvious gift of speaking her mind, bristled at the comment.

"We could've taken him out if you hadn't jumped in," she retorted, an annoyed scowl drawn across her features. His eyes, now directed at Zorano, turned cold.

"I said you did well, but neither of you are ready to handle an entire battle on your own. Besides, I'm supposed to keep Nicole safe, not lead her into danger."

"If you ask me, bringing her here led her into danger," Zorano snapped, swiftly getting to her feet and starting toward the others. I merely shook my head. She was just trying to win an argument, something she naturally excelled in. It really didn't matter who it was with, but she had to fight, to dominate the opponent. That or totally humiliate them. Marucho just happened to be at the receiving end of the quarrel. He glared momentarily at her before extending his gloved hand to me. I stared at it, unsure of what he was doing.

"Are you coming or not?" That was a rhetorical question. As I've stated before, I didn't have a choice. Nodding, I took hold of his hand, relishing in its firm grip. Strangely enough, the ice armor wasn't even cold. It was like warm metal colored like ice, or something. Once I was on my feet he let me go.

"Uh, yeah, and look," I paused, doubting whether or not I should even bother apologizing for my Bakugan, "I'm sorry about Zorano. She's… testy."

"Don't worry about it," he responded simply. We approached the others, and I had to stop myself from turning right back around. Harpus was screeching something at Julio with Komba backing her up and the Haos Brawler was shouting back, while Angelo tried unsuccessfully to mediate the argument. When the group caught sight of Marucho, they froze.

"So, what do we do now?" Komba asked after they caught up to us.

"Our best bet is to find Naga." As if in agreement, his Bakupod activated, revealing Dan's worried face. The unmistakable sounds of a battle could be heard in the background along with Runo encouraging Tigrerra.

"Marucho!" he shouted in distress.

"What is it, Dan?" the other responded calmly.

"We have a situation. Everyone showed up to help us defeat Shadow Centorrior and Shadow Druman, but we haven't finished them off yet, and Naga is on his way according to Shadow Druman. He's coming after Nicole." He paused and looked over at me. "You have to keep her safe, Marucho. Hide her!" Dan demanded. Marucho shook his head.

"No, Dan. If he wants her then he'll have to go through us. I'm taking the fight to him," he resolved. Dan grunted in frustration.

"Marucho, that's crazy! You can't defeat Naga alone. You're starting to sound like Shun!"

"You don't know until you try."

"Alright, but be careful. Go to the docks. We'll be there are soon as we can, and—Drago!" he yelled as the screen went black. Everyone shared a look before mounting their Bakugan, except for me, of course. Now I was having second thoughts about the progressing friendship between Zorano and me.

"Angelo, I'm going to need Diablo's speed." I watched as Angelo did a backflip and transformed. Now he was a reddish humanoid lizard with devil wings. He hopped on Diablo's back. "Do you want to ride up here?" Marucho asked quietly.

"She's riding with me, thank you very much," Zorano replied rudely. I shrugged and climbed onto her open palm. She lifted me up her shoulder and I took a seat. It wasn't long before the Darkus Bakugan took off, nimbly keeping up on the ground while Diablo and Harpus flew and Tentaclear floated behind them.

"What a change of perspective, huh?" I pointed out, still calm because I knew Zorano couldn't fly.

"What do you mean?" she questioned, easily dashing ahead of Angelo, who was leading us.

"Well, now I'm the one on your shoulder and you're the one carrying me around." Zorano chuckled, a ringing, bell-like sound which drew curious stares from the others. I gasped. Never had she so much as smiled for me, yet now she laughed and not _at_ me.

"What's so funny?" I asked a bit hesitantly.

"Well," she imitated, falling behind the flying lizard, "although our roles are reversed, I'll always be bigger than you."

"You win again, Zorano," I admitted, huffing playfully.

"Always," she agreed with a smirk. "Always." We continued in comfortable silence, neither one of us particularly inclined to break it. I stared in wonder at the deserted city. No longer was it the bustling metropolis I'd seen upon arrival. It was a ghost town, everyone having fled to avoid this phenomenon they couldn't explain. The traffic lights blinked yellow, not bothering to change colors anymore. Vehicles of all sorts awaited their owners patiently, serenely.

Even I, who was now headed toward imminent danger, couldn't bring myself to panic. I was past that. It was time to own up to the future and face it head on. Okay, so I honestly couldn't say I would embrace it with open arms, but I definitely wasn't running from it anymore. The Brawlers were brave and I had to be, too. Weakness wasn't an option anymore.

Angelo took a sudden left and the scenery changed. The gray skyscrapers vanished and steel cargo boxes littered the area, each one imprinted with a number and location. The turbulent ocean opened up in front of us and the sky thundered more violently than anywhere else, grays mixing with crimsons and vivid purples. The salty sea air was still and the gulls that usually inhabited the place were nowhere to be seen.

And neither was Naga for that matter. I hadn't seen him before, but I assumed he'd be big in an in-your-face kind of way. There were no other Bakugan here besides ours.

"What is this?" Julio asked impatiently. "Where's Naga?" Diablo answered him.

"How should I know? I just know that the Silent Core's energy came from here!" I felt a familiar chill spread through me, but this time a tugging sensation in my chest was added to it. I motioned for Zorano to let me down.

"He's coming. I'm sure of it," I said. "The core is pulling me toward the ocean. I'm positive it's leading me toward its counterpart." As I was about to elaborate, wind rushed past me, nearly blowing me away. Zorano grabbed me by my collar, holding me down. Glancing upward, I saw Drago landing next to Angelo.

The rest of the Brawlers arrived en masse, including many I hadn't seen before. Each one of them began to talk at once, voicing concerns, greetings, and other casual comments. A good majority of them had to do with Naga, that is, until Dan saw me standing there with Zorano. He ran over to us.

"No way! This is Zorano?" he exclaimed sizing her up. The others came as well, crowding around and overwhelming me with the noise. "Did you two actually battle?"

"Yes, is there a problem with that?" Zorano replied icily, instantly calming the racket. Dan merely laughed good-naturedly, instead of blowing up like I'd expected him to.

"'Course not! Just one more Brawler to help us out. Oh, man, I missed you guys in action. This bites! How was it, Marucho?" He cast me a fleeting look.

"I didn't catch all of it, but from what I saw, these two are a great team." I blushed, ducking my head down to hide it. Zorano didn't snap at him this time, opting to smirk arrogantly instead.

"Cute." A smooth voice droned sardonically. I didn't lift my head even as the Dan called him out or as Zorano stiffened beside me. "Nicole?" he prompted, and my stomach did flips in response and I began to feel lightheaded. The blush left my face and I paled. In my wildest dreams, I never imagined he'd be back. He couldn't be back, in fact.

James was gone. That's what I'd believed these past few months. I'd seen him in my visions, but at the time I didn't know what to make of them. This was probably an illusion created by Naga to psych us out. _Yeah, that's right._ I summoned my courage and lifted my head proudly.

Bad idea.

James stood at the edge of the docks, his gloved hands holding an object in each: a Bakugan in his right hand and a Gate Card in the other.

**So, how was this chapter? Things are starting to come together perfectly. The final battle starts next!**

**So, have any checked out the story I'm promoting through this? I'm sure you'll see some differences, but it's a really good story! If you can't remember, it's called Senses of Darkness. **


	62. Final Battle: Part 1 Nicole vs James!

**I'm so stoked! Just this and two more to go! And I have so many reviews! Okay, enough spazzing. It's time for Review Response!**

**brave kid: You will love the final battle, starting now!**

**alxkend: Alright!**

**xXShikigamiXx: Well, there's this one, then 64, then the Epilogue. So, it's 65 chapters total. 62 if you count the two prologue parts and the Epilogue separately.**

**Unknown Random Dude (): I'm glad you like it.**

**Doomburger: Beautiful? Heh! Thanks!**

**Pikana: Geez, everyone is getting more and more enthralled by this… Thank you!**

I felt bile rising in my throat. As much as I tried to convince myself that he wasn't really there, in actuality, no amount of denial could change the current situation. And it was making me physically ill. Where was the vision? I was experiencing all these feelings at once that something was bound to show up. I desperately willed the core to distract me with one so as to not see him in all his flawless glory.

He stood proudly before us, head held high with an uncharacteristic sneer stretched across his striking face. A fringe of ramrod-straight, blonde hair childishly fell into his eyes, but they didn't possess the kindness I'd come to love. The normally chartreuse eyes burned dark emerald with distinctive malevolence hidden in their depths. He was dressed in some sort of circus ringleader uniform with a red coat over black clothes and a top hat. Other than the eccentric clothes, there was no mistaking that it was James.

I opened my mouth to say something —anything- but sound refused to come forth. Zorano seemed to be experiencing the same thing. The Brawlers exchanged looks with each other, confusion clearly written across their faces. The tugging in my chest increased, and I felt a dark, pulsating energy emanating from the Bakugan in his hand.

There it was: the Infinity Core's other half within reach. The positive energy within me protested wildly to be whole once again. Maybe that was the reason I didn't see anything; the core was far too busy announcing its presence to the Silent Core.

"What's the matter, Nicky? Tigrerra got your tongue?" he teased, like in the good old days, using the nickname I hadn't been called in almost half a year. Marucho turned toward me as I stepped forward, out of Zorano's limp hold.

"You know him?"

"Know me?" James shouted. "We grew up together!" I trembled, my heart beating faster just from the sound of his voice. Reaching up to rub my face, I felt the moisture—tears freely escaping my traitorous eyes.

"J-James?" I asked cautiously. "It's really you?" He took a few steps toward me, and I involuntarily stepped forward to meet him. It wasn't the core pulling me this time; it was my deep-rooted feelings for him. Feelings that I should've buried long ago.

"Yes," he answered simply, smiling that thousand-watt grin he reserved only for me. It didn't reach his eyes, but I could've cared less at the moment. I began to move toward him when Marucho grabbed my hand.

"You can't trust him," he whispered in my ear. Despite logic trying to reason with me, I struggled against it, and Marucho's arms became a steel cage. Zorano made a break for it, but Gorem quickly prevented her from going to him.

"Let me go!" she roared, futilely striving for freedom as I was. James strolled to us leisurely.

"Ah, Zorano, so good to see you again. Has Nicky been taking care of you? I hope so. It'd be a shame if I left you in the wrong hands."

"Who is this jerk, Nicole?" Dan asked, his dark eyes angrily glaring James down. James locked eyes with me, placing a hand over his chest dramatically.

"Nicky, I'm hurt. You didn't tell your new friends about me? After everything we've been through?" I shook my head stiffly, jaw clenched tightly. "No? Well, are _all_ these people your friends?"

"Of course we are!" yelled Runo. He shrugged nonchalantly.

"That's surprising. You always were terrible at making friends." I froze. _You always were terrible at making friends. _An innocent enough phrase, but it stung as if he'd backhanded me in the face. This wasn't my James anymore. Never in the years had I known him had he demonstrated cruelty. Now it oozed from his being, coating every syllable his perfect lips uttered. "But you know what surprises me even more?" He plowed forward when no one answered. "_You_ have the Infinity Core." He chuckled darkly, his idea of a joke. "You, Nicole Adams —who has never brawled in her life- are now smack dab in the middle of this whole mess. Ironic, isn't it?"

_Liar!_ I wanted to scream. He'd piled lies on top of more deceits than I was willing to accept. I wanted to sob and let disappointment drown me. Nothing would've made me happier than to hurl every negative emotion at him that I'd felt since his death —that's right, death- but I hesitated. James brought me down, lower than dirt, when before I'd been on cloud nine because of him. And the other's couldn't do much except stare and feel pity.

"You know what is ironic?" An unexpected, eerily calm voice came to my rescue.

"What is it, Zorano?" he inquired, still smiling.

"You were the one behind this the entire time." He raised his eyebrows in mock astonishment. Preyas spoke up next.

"Um, hello? Major confusion going on here! Would somebody mind explaining?" All eyes focused on me. This was it. Time to spill the one secret I'd held from everyone. Hypocrisy, I know. No secrets in a team, and here I was, holding what was probably the biggest secret of all.

"I'm sorry," I whispered, my voice hoarse from crying. Slowly, I broke away from the safe arms of the best Aquos Brawler. "So sorry." I bit my lip again, bracing for my confession. "I've kept a secret."

"Whatever happened to no secrets?" Marucho reminded me coldly.

"I know what I said, okay?" I snapped. "James. I saw him in plenty of visions, but I never told any of you. If anything, I should have told you, Zorano. Forgive me." I might as well have looked behind me to meet Zorano's mercury eyes because she was, in all likelihood, glaring murderously at me. Death was out to get me anyway.

"You're asking for my forgiveness?" she asked incredulously, but I remained a statue.

"Yes. I'm imploring or all of you for forgiveness," I responded sincerely. How betrayed they must of felt. All this time —though I'd refused to acknowledge it- on some subconscious level I'd known James had everything to do with this. How much would that have helped end this?

I don't know.

The progress I'd made with Zorano most likely went down the drain as well. Only then did I realize how quickly feelings can die and be born. I'd become increasingly loyal to Zorano while hate simmered for my one time best friend. James clicked his tongue, obviously unsatisfied with that small exchange.

"Is that it?" I glared at him defiantly.

"No, that's not it!" I met everyone's gaze for a moment, straying on Marucho for longer than necessary. He stared back, his attractive features as unreadable as ever. "There's more."

"No," Zorano interposed. "I'll tell them." She stepped between James and me, blocking me with her form, but appearing immensely concentrated on the boy in front of us. "When we came to Earth the first time, this… this… bastard, for lack of a better word, was my partner. As opposed to Nicole and me, we actually got along. Several months later, he was declared dead." The blonde let out a sigh.

"Sad night, wasn't it? I was supposedly in an automobile accident, and you blamed Nicky because you believed she could've seen it coming and saved me. I could always count on you to be irrational, Zorano," he commented coolly, like we were all chums having a good time reminiscing.

"And I thought I could count on you to be honest," was her hostile comeback.

"Why did you do it?" My voice sounded braver than I felt inside, and the core still fought for freedom. His powerful stare drilled through me, silence filling the tension in the air. Then a smirk.

"You almost sounded intimidating. Let's find out how tough you really are. Gate Card, set…"

Completely ignoring my question, James flicked his Gate Card lazily, and it landed at my feet in a burst of purple light. His smirk didn't fade as I weighed my options. Simply put, he challenged me to a brawl. I could either back down and have one of the true Brawlers fight it for me —as if Zorano would ever let me live that down- or I could take a stand and face him. Ex-best friend on one hand and current friends on the other.

"I'll take you on!" Dan shouted before I could respond, pumping his fist into the air. Marucho stopped him, holding an arm out in front of the Pyrus Brawler.

"No, Dan. This isn't your battle to fight."

"What?" he gasped indignantly. "If I'm not going to brawl him, then who is?" His eyes searched the gathered Brawlers before settling on me. Looks like the choice was made. If I had to protect the core, then I would defend it on my own. I didn't need everyone to shield me as if I was a child. And besides that, James had betrayed me. I separated myself from them, looking him in the eyes defiantly.

"He challenged me. I will be the one to brawl." My voice broke at the end. Searching for support, I locked eyes with Zorano, and she nodded, joining me in front of the others. James chuckled loudly, sending chills through my body almost as strong as the mention of the Silent Core did.

"That's the spirit, Nicky. Even though any one of the others has a better chance of winning, you're going to doom them all. Admirable, but foolish."

"You're underestimating her," Marucho intervened quietly. "I know you don't stand a chance against Nicole."

Wow. That's all I had to say. Marucho had so much confidence in me, more than I deserved. Sure, Zorano wouldn't acknowledge the chance of defeat, but me? I wasn't quite so arrogant. I doubt the other Brawlers felt the same way, judging by the whispers I caught, each one showing surprise and hesitation toward the idea of me brawling James.

James brushed away the small kid's comment, directing his next sentence at me again.

"So, are going to throw down, or not?" I nodded fiercely, whipping out the collection of cards at my side, my hands shaking while I tried to sort through them. "Oh," he added with a dangerous gleam in his jade eyes, "how about we do this the old-fashioned way, you know, three on three."

Again I nodded. What did it matter if it was one on one or three on three? My chances of winning were slim, admittedly. I'd battled, what, once? One time did not make me an expert, or even a beginner, at that. Sure, I'd seen plenty of battles, mostly his, but experiencing was a totally different thing than watching. It frightened me.

And he knew that.

That's why the stupid smirk on his lips widened as he looked on passively, waiting for me to set a Gate Card.

What to do? Zorano sent one more glare at her former partner and reverted to her spherical form, perching on my shoulder. I pretended to be deep in thought as I fanned out the Gate Cards in my hands. That was a half-truth. I was thinking all right, but my thoughts continued to drift toward a certain antagonist. Zorano bounced anxiously on my shoulder, one of her more less-irritating ways of telling me to get a move on.

"Which one?" I whispered to her, risking a glance behind me at the others. Each one expressed justified apprehension, some biting their lips, others fidgeting uneasily. Only Marucho stood calmly, and I silently thanked him for it. Someone out of all of us needed to be steady. She sighed impatiently.

"Pick that one. The one in the middle." _Trade Off_, I learned instantly, _defeats a Bakugan with a power level over 400_. Well, it looked as good as any to choose. Zorano had the practice, so who was I to doubt her? I chucked it across the field, and it settled itself at his feet.

********Start Battle********

"Congratulations on setting your first Gate Card," he sneered, throwing another card down to the left his first. "Bakugan, brawl. Laserman, stand!" The small, purple ball rolled forward and opened on the second card. The robot-like beast stood, four massive cannons jutting out of its shoulders. It faced me menacingly, and I gulped.

"Get to it, Nicole!" Zorano scolded in my ear. "Which Bakugan did the old guy give you?" No clue, I answered in my head while I held up two purple spheres. She stared at them thoughtfully. "A Siege and a Garganoid. Neither of them matches up to Laserman's power." I raised an eyebrow in question. Had she been able to, Zorano would have rolled her eyes at my ignorance. "The Bakupod!" she reminded me with annoyance. I smiled sheepishly, flipping the small device open. The automated voice spoke up immediately.

_**Laserman power level 500 Gs.**_

"See?" she pointed out justly. "It's better to send out one of them onto your Gate Card okay?" I saw how that would evade a battle, but an Ability Card would raise our power, right? I asked her about this, to which she remarked,

"I'm the one who has actually brawled here, so will you trust me?" I resigned myself to listen to Zorano, since she always seemed to be right, throwing Garganoid onto Trade Off. It emerged in a spiral shape, shooting straight up before expanding the wings wrapped around its body and revealing his gargoyle-like face.

"Perfect, Zorano," James muttered, "You haven't changed a bit, as predictable as always." He raised a different card. "Ability Card, activate. Leap Sting!" I glanced at his Bakugan, now taking aim at my Garganoid.

"Hey! You can't attack Garganoid. He's on a different gate card," I protested, only to have Zorano jump and tackle my forehead. "Ouch!"

"Leap Sting is an ability that a Darkus Bakugan can use to attack anywhere on the field, genius," she informed, settling back down on my head this time. Sure enough, Laserman fired a continuous stream of lavender blasts from its cannons, all striking my Bakugan head on. Garganoid shrank back into a ball and clattered to the floor beside me while Laserman returned to James extended hand. That was the first battle, and I'd lost it.

"Don't feel too bad," James taunted. "I think everyone here knew you couldn't win. My move." He chose to summon another Bakugan on the same card, this time a Centipoid. The threatening insect creature rose up, wiggling its many legs and snapping two sharp pincers —its mouth probably- together.

"Okay, Nicole, don't screw things up again," the Darkus Bakugan on my head chided.

"Me?" I responded crossly. "I was only doing what you said." She huffed.

"Whatever. Now set that card," she leaped down and tapped the indicated card, "and summon Siege onto it." It didn't seem to me that her strategy, avoiding battle, would work. I mean, I'd lost one Bakugan already, and at this rate, it wasn't long before I lost Siege, too, and possibly Zorano. Still, I was in no position to criticize, so I set my second card next to James's first.

I rolled my second to last Bakugan, gazing in respect at the Darkus being that emerged. Siege was a true knight, carrying a sharp lance and wearing a cape that billowed behind him gently. Sensing my eyes, he turned and nodded at me, as if saying it trusted me. Well, that was new.

James quickly dished out a new card next to _my_ first for a total of five gate cards. His next move caught me off guard. He sent his Laserman into a direct battle with Siege. With a few hits, Laserman had pushed Siege to the edge of the card. Siege couldn't be that much weaker than Laserman, could he? I checked the Bakupod to be sure.

_**Laserman power level at 500 Gs. Siege power level at 400 Gs.**_ Okay, Siege was at a one hundred point disadvantage. Zorano nagged me to open the Gate Card, and I promptly complied.

"Gate Card, open! Grand Spirit! James, this card gives Siege a power boost of 50 Gs for every card of mine on the field." I couldn't help being a little smug watching the Bakupod as Siege gained 200 Gs, tying the battle at 500 Gs each. Siege fought back now, and they matched each other's attacks blow for blow. If they battled at an equal power level, then no winner would be declared and both would return to their owners. I was more willing to accept a tie than another defeat.

"Tsk, tsk, Nicky. Take a page out of Zorano's book and learn that arrogance gets you nowhere," he said, holding up another ability. "Ability Card, activate! Dimension Four!" He grinned like a Cheshire cat. "With this, your Gate Card is useless. Finish Siege, Laserman." I fell to my knees. Siege's power dropped, and he landed beside me. No way, not another battle lost.

"What was that?" Zorano questioned furiously. James, as expected, behaved on the contrary, snickering and cheering as if he'd won the entire thing already. The other Brawlers remained silent, unsure whether to encourage me or give up hope. But this wasn't over, not until I decided it was.

"You haven't won yet!" I yelled at him, standing and finding the guts to retort in his spiteful eyes. His eyes widened in mild surprise.

"Oh, haven't I? This battle was over before it began, _Nicole_." I flinched at the icy sound of my name. "All you have left is puny Zorano. Face it, you and your pathetic friends are done for."

"Puny?!" she yelled, offended, murmuring various vague threats that I was sure he couldn't hear. I shook my head, whispering to myself,

"No, I _will_ win." Then, when Zorano pestered me about the next move, I spoke up. "Zorano, it's time for a change of plans. We're doing things my way now." I grabbed her, calculating all the while.

"You've got to be kidding me."

"Nope," I answered, deciding to throw her into a battle with Centipoid. Zorano reluctantly stood, sending me a scathing look.

"How nice of you to finally join the party, Zorano," James drawled, tossing one of his Bakugan in the air and catching it. It was the same one from before that had been emitting the dark energy. Instinctively, I shivered, attempting to ward away the frigid sensation.

"Shut it, James," Zorano bit out, backing away slowly from Centipoid. The Bakupod warned me of his higher power level, but apparently a sixty point difference wasn't enough for James.

"Gate Card, open. Character!" I knew from previous battles that a Character Card doubled a certain Bakugan's power, but now that I was playing like I knew how, my next move was obvious.

"Ability Card, activate! Mirror Drain!" I held up the card and watched it glow purple. "When my opponent activates a card that increases Gs, this card allows me to drain your Bakugan of the amount it gained times two." That was a unique card all its own. I knew that I could only use three Ability Cards per battle. However, if I used Mirror Drain first, it didn't count against me. I could still use three more cards.

His eyebrows knit together in confusion, since it was seemingly impossible in his world for me to make a decent move. I then witnessed his lips moving softly, as if whispering to himself, or more likely, to the Bakugan in his hand.

It was my turn to smirk when his Centipoid's power level reached zero, and the Bakugan automatically was removed from the battle, making Zorano the winner.

"That was alright," she grumbled, back turned when I caught her in my hand. I allowed myself a smile and felt my confidence boost when the team rooted my victory. For the next move, I tossed Zorano onto my first card, directly in front of my new arch-nemesis. Soon after, his Laserman joined in.

Zorano was down by 160 Gs, and in response, Zorano strung together a colorful array of foul words aimed at James. The cannons directed themselves at her, but she narrowly avoided the discharges.

"Gate card, open! Trade Off!" Immediately, Laserman's sphere clanked to the floor. "With Trade Off, I can—"

"I know what it does," he barked out, his gaze flickering between me and the Brawlers. I set another Gate Card in the same spot, Zorano following it soon after.

"What do you have to say now, punk?" she jeered, staying put for once in the middle of the field.

He merely shook his head.

"Gate Cards, return," he commanded simply, his two remaining cards flying back to his outstretched hand. I glanced at Marucho, puzzled over whether that was allowed in the game. And if it was, how come I hadn't seen it done before? The half-armored blonde met my eyes, and he seemed as perplexed as I was.

"Hey, that's against the rules!" he shouted at him, Dan nodding angrily in agreement and pitching in with a,

"What gives, James?"

"Sorry, but I play by my own… rules," he hissed, dragging out the last word. Then he faced me, almost smiling for a second before the sneer took over. "You asked me why I faked my own death. It's simple, really," he began. "Power."

"Power?" I echoed hollowly, seeing Zorano tense and shift her position into a crouch. I really hoped she wasn't planning on pouncing on him.

"That's right. You see, I brawled well, but I was never ranked. You can't imagine how frustrating that was, knowing you were the best, but not being recognized for it. Zorano was unbelievably haughty about it, but she didn't see the big picture."

I couldn't help but glare at him. Talk about the perfect jerk! Zorano also seemed to have a loathing gaze fixated on him.

"Then, about a month before my death, I learned of the race to become the Ultimate Bakugan. It was my break. Secretly, I contacted Masquerade and told him I wanted to join in, but he refused. When Masquerade's identity was revealed," he paused, jade orbs falling on Alice, the copper-haired girl that seemed gentle and fragile.

Honestly, I didn't know much about her, other than she battled with a fearsome-looking Darkus Bakugan. But the way he scrutinized her made me jump to one conclusion: she had been Masquerade, whoever that was. My thoughts were in knots, and I focused back on his talk. However, it was interrupted when a rainbow rectangle appeared out of nowhere.

A teenager with fiery, blonde hair and brown eyes hopped out of it. He wore black tennis shoes, blue jeans, and a white shirt. Talk about bland.

"Did somebody mention my name?" he asked with a smirk on his face. James glanced between Alice and the blonde.

"But… you… her…" The blonde smirked and threw a Bakugan.

"Exedra, stand!" A nine-headed hydra appeared, and he had a mouth on his stomach. "Does that answer your question?" James focused a glare, but then calmly turned back to us and continued.

"When she took off the mask, Hal-G personally invited me to take his place. All I had to do was break ties with my former life, which wasn't terribly difficult. I had to stay in waiting for five boring years when I learned about Drago." He turned to Zorano, her frown intensifying with each word he spoke. "Zorano, no offense… actually, take offense. You weren't cut out to be the best. I mean, all this time and you haven't evolved, unlike all these other worthless Bakugan." He gestured to the assembled Bakugan. "And besides, I knew that if you ever learned the truth, you and Nicole would never get along enough to do anything about it."

"Take that back!" I demanded, surprised at where all this inner strength was coming from. He scoffed.

"This is what power looks like, Zorano. If you survive, maybe you'll learn something. Bakugan, brawl!" He rolled his final Bakugan onto my card where Zorano now stood. The beast's eyes glowed violet before an eruption of darkness enveloped the field. "Nicky, meet Naga."

**Oh, boy. How will Nicole and Zorano defeat the evil known as Naga? Find out in the next chapter!**


	63. Final Battle: Part 2 Naga's Wrath!

**Oh, man! This is it, the semi-final chapter! I can't believe it! Okay, now, as always, it's time for Review Response!**

**alxkend: Don't worry. You'll get your fill of surprises.**

**Pikana: No need to worry! Here it is!**

**Zorano's POV**

I rather like daytime soap operas. Although I wouldn't admit it to anyone, those convoluted, plot-hole laden dramas always captured my attention when I wasn't brawling. Coincidently, that was exactly what I was watching the day Nicole dragged me to Wardington. Until it was interrupted by a special news bulletin, that is.

One bad thing about soap operas, though, is that they only tend to be interesting while watching them. It is not quite so entertaining to be involved in one. And a soap opera is exactly what this was becoming.

The guy taken for dead comes out of nowhere because it was all part of his evil plan. He abandoned the two females in his life, and now he expects them to welcome him with open arms although one has found a new love. Now it's a love triangle. Okay, so maybe I over exaggerated, but most of that was… somewhat true.

Oh, and to put the icing on the cake, as humans say, said evildoer had now summoned his strongest, potentially lethal Bakugan. No, today was not my day, nor was any other day, for that matter, since nothing _good_ ever happened to me.

All I could do was step back as the colossal split-nose dragon roared mightily, the dark energy from the Silent Core drowning out all other powers. Oh, man, what had Nicole gotten me into? I glanced back at her, only to observe the way she swayed on the spot. She was fainting! Why now? I stared a moment longer and felt the answer. The energy within her was steadily increasing, and her frail human body couldn't take it.

"Hey!" I yelled at her. "What do you think you're doing?" Her unfocused eyes looked up blankly. "You'd better not faint on me! I… I need your help, okay?" I acknowledged, practically feeling my ego shriveling up.

I saw her shake her head, to clear it probably, and she gave me a weak smile. It was unnerving, to say the least, sensing the power within her rising and falling. The same happened within Naga. They were having their own battle to see which aura would come out on top: positive and the Infinity Core or negative and the Silent Core.

It seemed that the Silent Core was winning. She trembled violently; her dark eyes glazed over and she lost her balance. Before she would hit her head again, though, the normally polite but now stoic blonde boy caught her in his arms. I couldn't tell if she was out cold because a voice more chilling than that of James's rumbled and commanded attention.

"Well, sister, it's been a while, hasn't it?" he asked mockingly, examining the other White One, who stood by Joe.

"Naga, do you not see the harm you're doing to both our worlds?" she exclaimed, hurt dripping from her voice.

"Wayvern, the question here is do _you_ not see the power I have gained? Almost nothing is beyond me," he boomed. "All I need to complete my power is the Infinity Core the girl holds. If she could take it from you, then this will be easier than I expected."

"No way!" Dan shouted, his Dragonoid taking flight while the boy prepared the abilities he'd use.

"Drago, neither you nor any of these other Bakugan will stop me. Shadow Down!"

Naga's palm faced the others, who were all idiotically assembled in one clump. I tried to warn them, but it was too late. A mauve dome generated around them stopping Drago in mid-flight and sealing them inside. All their screams of protest were silenced as the trap was sealed and the truth sank in.

Nicole and the midget were the only people who'd escaped the dome.

And I was the only Bakugan.

"Now the runt is all that's left between me and what's rightfully mine!" Naga shot me a derisive look and James smirked, goading me into an attack on either of them. I wasn't about to give him the satisfaction, however.

I couldn't afford the luxury of being impulsive, not when I was on my own for the time being. Marucho was without Preyas or Diablo, and I couldn't do much without Nicole. Talk about being up a creek without a paddle. I silently pleaded, to any higher force willing to listen, that Nicole wake up any second now.

"Eliminate her," James ordered, no trace of his former benevolent self on his face. I braced myself, glaring back rebelliously even if this was my final stand. Maybe it was the sudden rush of adrenaline and my pointed ears playing tricks on me, but the faint whisper of my name caught my attention. Sharply, I spun around and checked up on Nicole. Okay, so it's generally not the smartest idea to turn your back on the opponent. Still, I didn't hesitate in grinning when she gazed back at me.

"Ready?" I asked, bouncing around on the tips of my feet and cracking my knuckles.

She nodded, standing, but leaning on Marucho for support.

"Alright, Zorano, let's do this," she declared in a convincingly brave voice, though I saw the way her eyes darted nervously toward the dome. "Swords Dance!" That ability was mine alone, and I immediately felt the 100 G power boost.

"That useless ability?" James yawned. "You forget, Zorano, I know all of your moves."

Damn him. He had a point. As my original partner, he probably knew me better than I knew myself. Every single move I made was accounted for in his memory. This was going to be harder than I thought. "Double Dimension," he called out lazily, and just like that, I was back at 340 Gs.

Nicole seemed to be prepared, though.

"Gate Card, open! Character!" I'd forgotten she'd set that card, but I wasn't complaining. "And, I'm not done yet! Darkus Enforcer! This lets Zorano gain 200 G's if one of her previous abilities is cancelled." Ha! Sucker! My power skyrocketed to 880 G's. I could feel the Darkus energy flowing through me as invigorating as rain in the desert.

Maybe now I might have a chance against Naga. Despite what I'd told myself about being rash, I charged forward, drawing my sword to clash against Naga's giant chest.

The second before the collision Nicole added another of my unique abilities to the mix.

"Asteroid Strike!" A simple one, it decreased my opponent's attack by 50 Gs and raised mine by the same amount.

"Pathetic. Sai-Curious Shield!" bellowed Naga. Asteroid Strike was no more, and my sword clashed against Naga's hard body without so much as a scratch. And it didn't stop there. "Darkus Riot!" A single, purple, burning blast erupted from the diamond on his chest, where he held the core. In an attempt to dodge I jumped up, only receiving the shockwaves of the blow, which had enough strength to know me backwards. I blindly rushed him again, positive Nicole would back me up.

"Dusk Sky!" This was it. Dusk Sky was the last card we had up our sleeves. The colored sky swirled malignantly above me, enveloping the field in a curtain of darkness. With it as my cloak, I attacked Naga, striking him continuously and expertly while agilely evading his scattered assaults.

Luck, however, decided that things were too good for us, and Naga miraculously trained his sights on me, his next blow smashing into me head on. Winded, I hunched over to catch my breath—a sitting duck.

Two more blasts had me facedown on the ground. My mind screamed at me to get up and continue the fight, but my body went on strike and refused to obey. More attacks rained down, and I cried out in pain and… surrender.

"No! Don't do this to her! Please, James, no!" she begged. He laughed in response. "Zorano, listen to me!" she shouted at me, and the positive energy within her surged, fighting off the negative energy swelling within Naga in an attempt to pull the Infinity Core toward it. "Give up now, and it's the end of the line, for me and you." I didn't move, allowing myself to be bombarded with hit after hit.

"You've got to get up, Zorano!" the intelligent kid added. "Are you really so selfish as to give up everything we've fought for?" _We?_ I barely knew them, and he thought he was going to guilt me into finding some energy to get up?

"You're proving him right." Her voice neared. "This is what he wants, to see us cower, especially you." The light and power inside her boiled, and I took a ragged breath. "Zorano, who's the strong one here?" she asked desperately, near hysterics, suddenly ducking beside me, shaking my shoulder.

The attacks kept coming. Both of us could be taken out together. She crouched by my side, huddled against me, and I knew she was still fighting.

Nicole was weak. It was an irrefutable fact.

But as fragile as she was, there was fight in her.

Still.

I couldn't see her, but I _could_ tell she struggled. She was clashing against the arms that tried to pry her away and get her to safety, and I knew she was stupid enough to stay. She stood up, though the core pressured her to give herself over. She boldly faced her best friend though everyone doubted her.

And this was me, the one that was battling beside her and the one who distrusted her most.

"I need you, too," she murmured in a last ditch effort.

I willed every fiber of my being to stand and fight, ready to push myself as far as I had to, but as it turns out, I didn't have to.

A darkness not caused by an Ability Card swallowed me, not fueled by my energy, but by the Infinity Core's. In the pitch black I felt wounds heal, scars fade. The weariness vanished and a burst of vigor shot through me like a one-hit KO, short and electrifying. The shadows pushed and pulled, a tide, scalding and freezing, giving and taking.

As quickly as they appeared, the shadows dispersed, leaving me standing tall and smug. I smirked at Nicole and Marucho.

"What happened?" she asked wide-eyed, not hiding the grin on her face.

"She evolved," Marucho stated simply in response. I had to admit, though it was a weird feeling going through an evolution, I didn't feel any different now. Sure, I _looked_ different. I mean, I was all sleek and shiny now. The loose clothes tightened, and my sword was gone, in its place an amethyst bow. As I stretched, I noticed the jet-black wings that expanded with me. Oh, yeah, _those_ were cool.

"Bring it on, James," I challenged, flexing my wings experimentally. "I'm Twilight Zorano and now you don't know what tricks I can pull." Nicole mirrored my overconfident expression.

"Ability Card, activate! Cosmic Impact! Watch as Zorano gains 100 Gs and Naga loses 150 Gs." I flew into the air, positioning myself right above Naga. Then I did a nosedive straight down, arms forward, my body literally becoming a speeding bullet. The impact echoed off the lonely buildings behind us. "Black Blizzard!" she added, flipping another Ability Card.

I aimed my bow, a large obsidian arrow centered on Naga. I fired it, watching it sail soundlessly through the air all the while splintering and forming more arrows. The sky clouded like at dusk, only a sliver of true light available. Each one hit the mark, cracking Naga's impenetrable armor and making his roar of pain ring out across the docks. The expression on James's face was priceless, mouth open and eye twitching.

The wind picked up suddenly, and a green glow appeared with a whirring noise. Next to James appeared some blue, metal thing. Please tell me it wasn't another Bakugan.

"Well, James, looks like things aren't as easy as you said they would be," he said in a monotone voice. No, wait, it wasn't a Bakugan. It was something called a robot, but it seemed to have a malevolent aura and also able to think, unlike other machines.

"Shut up, Metal Sonic! I can handle this." I attacked Naga for good measure, and he scowled. "Alright, I need help." Metal sneered.

"As you wish." His —well, I guess it was a male- hand opened up, and five spheres shot out of it. "Bakugan, brawl! Paladins, stand!" The spheres glowed purple as they landed. Five faceless, bulky knights in heavy armor stood, blocking Naga with huge, impenetrable shields. The intricate symbols on their shields meandered around menacing spikes, clearly meant to perforate. Crap.

"Cheaters!" I shouted at all of them.

"Oh, is little Zorano finally afraid of playing with the big boys?" James teased. "This is Naga's personal royal guard, the Fifth Paladin, and I dare you to get past them." He stepped back, observing as Naga chortled manically and the guards aimed their sharply points spears that had emerged seemingly out of nowhere at me.

"You know, Nicole, now might be a good time to activate a card," I hinted, picturing the holes those things were going to drill into me shortly.

"Right. Fusion Ability Activate! Dark Abyss!" she lifted a gold card up, and darkness returned, creating an opaque wall around us. Their spears didn't even make a dent, but that still didn't mean I could defeat six Bakugan at once, even with the massive power boost the card gave me. _That_ was just excessive.

"Marucho, what do I do?" she asked him as I also tried to think of some way out of this pickle. If we had the other Bakugan it would be easy, but we didn't. They were all currently trapped inside some purple dome that was apparently unbreakable from the inside. The outside was untouched, our chaotic battle not being within close enough proximity to harm it. Maybe… I glanced down and saw a twinkle in the boy's deep blue eyes.

"Zorano," he began, already walking backward toward the dome, "you have to attack the dome. I have a feeling that if you hit the outside enough, it'll break." I shrugged, scooping the two onto in my hands, so as to not leave them unprotected, and flying up to get a bird's eye view. Naga and his guards continued to attack and I did my best to dodge. I just hoped they didn't decide to follow me.

"Z-Zorano," Nicole stammered, lying facedown on my palm. "P-please put me down. I don't—" I sharply turned to the left, causing her to shriek. Marucho crouched beside her, not affected in the least by some altitude.

He whispered something I couldn't understand in her ear and gently pulled her to her knees. She shook her head and kept her eyes tightly shut. Please, flying wasn't that bad. It was only dangerous if you were inexperienced.

"Nicole, you have to open your eyes," I scolded. "I can't really attack if I'm holding you, so you'll have to get on my shoulder." Another blast whizzed to my left, and I couldn't wait any longer. Locking eyes with Marucho, he nodded, and I tossed them over my shoulder.

Nicole screamed, as was expected, though the boy had a tight hold on her. Swooping in below them, the armored boy landed skillfully on my shoulder, and her shrill cry stopped abruptly. Hesitantly, she opened her eyes, and looked upon the dome and Bakugan still trying to shoot me out of the sky.

"You caught us," she said in a low voice.

"I can be unreasonable sometimes, but I won't let you fall," I informed her, seeing an opportunity to strike the dome while the attacks missed by a long-shot.

Again and again, I attacked the dark energy dome, specifically focusing on one area near the top. Naga grew impatient that his assaults continually failed to hit and took things into his own hands. His hidden wings expanded, flapping once and letting his enormous body take flight. I tried not to panic as I aimed my bow, shooting an arrow at the weakened area. Nothing happened.

Naga laughed, closing in on me. I skirted the perimeter of the dome, hoping to nick him from behind with another arrow. Instead, it happened in reverse. He snuck up behind me, which I find difficult to swallow since Naga is huge, and his claws settled themselves around my neck. I squirmed, shrugging to give Marucho the hint to get off.

"No, you don't," Naga responded, plucking the humans off with his free appendage, squeezing them in his palm. Both should have been terrified because he was mostly likely going to crush the life out of them, but instead Nicole had this strange expression on her face and Marucho looked determined to break free.

"Let her go!" Marucho shouted, his gaze flashing between the dome below and Naga in front. My breath was coming in short gasps now, and I began to feel lightheaded.

"Don't… give him… anything." I choked out, tearing at his claws. Then my vision flickered. One minute it was Naga's hideous face, the next it was black. His hold tightened on us, and I slowly lost the energy to continue.

A gut-wrenching crack resounded through the air at that moment. At first, I thought he'd finally snapped my neck, but everything didn't go black all at once, and Naga's grip actually loosened. I scrambled out of his grasp, holding my neck, and gasping for breath.

A fire ball shot past me, colliding with the huge dragon, and sending the two humans spiraling downward. After clearing my vision, I dove, yanking Marucho up by his shirt and dragging Nicole up with him. I inspected the released Bakugan, who stared back equally mystified.

"This ends now, Naga," Drago spoke.

"Alright, Battle Brawlers, let's take him down!" Dan shouted. A plethora of attacks combined, each team present lending a voice to the cause. Bakugan and humans of all shapes and sizes let themselves be heard, uniting against a common enemy.

For a moment, I held back, just staring at James and how he seemed to accept where this was headed. His emerald eyes stared back, not showing anger, but resignation and something else. Hope? Maybe this was how it was meant to be.

Nicole didn't push me into an attack. She, in a sense, was resigning herself, too. The choices we'd made were irreversible, binding us to the future we'd once dreaded. She and I observed, if not serenely, then at peace. The damage mounted, encompassing the area with smoke, and even though I knew it was quite the opposite, I heard the silence.

There was no final cry from Naga, James, the guards or even Metal Sonic, only quiet. The destruction was inevitable, and after the explosion, the last thing that faded into the smoke was a matching set of jade. Nicole, however, seemed uneasy.

"Guys, we have a problem!" Drago roared. I turned to him with a glare. What problem was there? Oh. Wait.

The Silent Core's energy was gone.

Nicole still had the Infinity Core.

"Crap! Metal must've used Chaos Control!" Dan yelled. It didn't take a genius to know about that. It had to have been the green glow that brought him here. A teleportation technique. We were screwed.

**Normal POV**

Nicole and Zorano sat on the ground tensely. They knew that the fight was far from over. Masquerade had known this and typed a few things on his Bakupod.

"Okay, guys. Now!" Masquerade raised his Bakupod into the air. The screen glowed, and within seconds, a portal opened up. The Smashers jumped out of the portal with Tails, Chip, Amy and Speedy. They all grouped together.

"Okay, guys. Those to will be coming back any minute!" Dan said, taking his role seriously. "When they show up, let's nail 'em!" The others agreed.

"Eet's-a time to get-a serious!" Mario prompted. Suddenly, the wind whipped around as a green glow appeared before them. Metal Sonic conveyed a smirking expression. Sonic's quills bristled as he took a fighting stance.

"You're going down, blue-butt!" Dan mocked. Metal's electronic eyes flared.

"Oh? Well, say hello to your obstacle!" He then launched out a somewhat large orb that was the size of Sonic's leg. He disappeared again. The orb slowly opened, and for some reason, a… banana with legs, arms, and a face popped out?

"What the heck is that thing?" Dan asked with a sweatdrop. Mario looked at it from a distance.

"Oh no! Sonic, do you-a know what that ees!? Eet ees de Kamikaze Banana! Run!!" Sonic had a freaked out look on his face as he dragged the others.

"What's a…" Suddenly, the banana yelled.

"I like cereal!!!" With that, a huge explosion threw everyone back a little bit. Sonic shook his head.

"Man, that was close…" Masquerade looked at the hedgehog.

"How did you know what that was?"

"Duh! Haven't you seen Super Mario Bros. Z?" The blonde face-palmed.

"Oh… right…" Once the smoke cleared, there stood the two villains.

"That's it, Naga! You're going down!"*

"You pathetic weaklings will never stop us!" Naga roared, enveloping himself in a purple and black glow. "Metal Sonic! Let us finish these insects!"

"As you wish, master…" Metal Sonic laughed as he shrunk down into silver liquid. As if the Silent Core willed it, the puddle of liquid metal launched into the air and began to cover parts of Naga's body. It went inside the gem on his chest. The White One roared with such intensity that the ground began to shatter.

The group grimaced as there was a sickening crack combined with a swishing sound. Naga's muzzle began to turn sideways! The bones popped and grew and shrunk until his face looked normal, save for the vertical line that went to his split nose.

Nicole looked like she was about to throw up, as did Amy. Then, the liquid began to emerge from the Bakugan's pores, coating some of his skin. The metal became blue as it solidified, forming strong armor. The purple gem was still visible. Naga's eyes sunk into his head before two electronic, red eyes formed on the blue, metal helmet, lined up vertically instead of horizontally.

Two shining orbs that were inside his head turned into one slightly bigger one as it sunk lower and lower. Naga opened his mouth and roared, his long tongue coming out and… opening to show the glowing orb, which was actually revealed to be his eyes —eye- as it dimmed. Amy and Nicole couldn't handle it and vomited on the ground.

"Behold the strength of Metal Naga!!" Naga cackled. Link smirked along with Sonic and Dan.

"I remember the tongue-eye thing from the Forest Temple in Faron Woods. That doesn't scare me!" the armed warrior proclaimed.

"I don't care if Naga's two eyes became one and went to his ugly mouth. It's just Metal Overlord's armor covering Naga!" Naga's purple veins surged with yellow electricity. "Okay, maybe it's internal too…" the blue blur stated.

"Now, to show you my ultimate power!" Black Bakugan poured out from a portal. They swarmed the skies and seas, and some came from the other directions.

"We have to stop him! If Naga uses Netherwar's power to absorb the energy of those Shadow Bakugan…" Drago said. "It'll be much harder to beat him than last time! Attack!" They all rushed in to start the battle. This would be the fight of their lives. Drago veered towards Naga, getting ready to attack. Sonic glanced at his Bakupod.

"Whoa! Metal Naga's at 3000 Gs!" Sonic shouted. It was then that all of the Brawlers and Smashers (minus Nicole) threw down a Gate Card at the same point. They merged into one huge shape that span around, and it glowed faintly with the six attribute colors.

_**New battle recognized. Metal Naga at 3000 Gs. Calculating Brawler and Smasher power level.**_

"This should clarify things!" Sonic hollered. "I'll activate my Gate Card! Transform! This increases the power level of the Bakugan on the card to match the strongest ally!" Naga growled. "And that's not all!" Speedy and Amy sat beside Nicole and Zorano, totally confused. "You see this shape below us? Gate Cards are rapidly spinning beneath our feet. Due to this, the energy can't stay in one place!"

"Then… that means…" Naga began. Sonic raised a hand, then pointed at Naga.

"That's right! Every Bakugan on our side is affected! So now, my friends and I are at 550 Gs each!" The power level skyrocketed through the roof. Dan laughed cheerily.

_**Brawlers and Smashers at 20900 Gs.**_

"I'd say your time is up!" the brunette mocked.

"I will not allow this! RAAAH!!!" Naga's bellow formed a black rectangle, dimming out the lights below. Zorano twitched, knowing that this was bad. Sonic glanced at the card, and their Ability Cards were jerked out of their hands and stuck to the blackness.

"Oh, crap! We can't move!" Preyas said, terrified.

"That's right!" Naga cackled. "This is a different version of my Shadow Down ability."

"Since when did you gain that, anyway?!" Wayvern screeched.

"I got this ability from Metal Sonic. Until we combined, he could only give me one ability at a time. This one was courtesy of Netherwar!" Dan growled.

"You won't get away with this!" Dan yelled.

"Don't worry. I like a challenge. This will fade once I finish my transformation! Now, Shadow Bakugan! My loyal minions, I now take your power!" The Bakugan became blurs and whirred together. Three rings surrounded Naga and they shrunk together as he absorbed the energy. Dan watched in horror as Naga's Gs steadily increased and went into the ten-thousands. They finally stopped, and the darkness faded.

The Smashers were unstuck and the Ability Cards floated back to them. Tails glanced down to his Bakupod. He was sitting near Speedy.

"Tails, is Sonic going to be able to beat him?" Tails glanced at Speedy, who wore a worried face. However, it seemed that three faces were full of worry. Tails understood immediately. His and Sonic's parents were watching the battle as well. The twin-tailed fox looked over at the battle.

"They have 38 Gate Cards. I just hope they're strong enough." They heard Sonic laugh.

"Is that the best you got?! Let's show you how it's done!" Sonic said.

"Sonic, wait!" Dan yelled. "Ganondorf, Mewtwo, Meta Knight! Hydranoid, Reaper, Exedra! You have to get out of the battle! Naga can absorb your power if you stay on the battlefield!" Sonic's jaw fell a little, but he nodded before glowing with a rainbow light.

"Final Smash, activate!" The Chaos Emeralds began to spin around before Sonic lit with a golden light, transforming into Super Sonic. He aimed a palm at the six dark-types. "Chaos… Control!" The six were moved far away from Naga's reach.

_**Recalculating power levels. Naga at 30,000 Gs. Brawlers and Smashers at 17,600 and counting.**_

Amy and Chip's jaws dropped as Speedy simply looked on worriedly. Link then held out his hand.

"Now it's my turn! Gate Card, open! Hyper Merge! Now, we'll gain 3,000 Gs while you lose 3,000 Gs!"

_**Naga at 27,000 Gs. Other Bakugan at 20,600 Gs.**_

"What good will that do?!" Naga barked.

"Since I activated the next phase, Wayvern can use her Ability Card! Wayvern, now!" Link hollered. Wayvern focused.

"Shining Pyrus!" Naga felt his energy being depleted. Wayvern and Naga switched energy. However, Naga wasn't done.

"I… won't… let… you… win!!!! Double Dimension!" Wayvern's attempt was crushed.

"Now it's our turn! Fusion Ability, activate!" Samus said. "Distraction Buster! This cancels your ability!"

_**Power levels recalibrated. Naga at 20,600 Gs. Brawlers and Smashers at 27,000 Gs.**_

Everyone then held out their hands. The Gate Cards returned automatically.

"What are you doing?!" Naga yelled.

"You used all three abilities, Naga. You failed to make our power levels switch back. It's over!" Pikachu hollered. "Now… Final Strike!" Everyone held a card while the Smashers glowed, all but Sonic.

"This is for the Bakugan!" Drago roared.

"For Earth!" Dan put in.

"For Smash World!" Meta Knight added.

"For my brother!" Sonic said.

"For all of the worlds that you threatened!" Pikachu finished. Zero Laser combined with Volt Tackle. Triforce Slash mixed with Critical Hit. Diffusion Beam aided Mario Finale. Beast Ganon charged with Giga Bowser. Supernova Flare shot with Twin Aqua Dragons. Shadow Sword clanged with Dammy's Fangirl Mallet.

The combination attack was a fireworks display of power, courage, determination, and sense of justice. Metal Naga roared in pain as he was slowly being destroyed. Masquerade rushed in with the last words Naga would ever hear— well, unless he was revived again.

"This is for all of the pain you put me and my sister through! Die, Naga!" Masquerade began to slash mercilessly. Naga roared constantly as gashes appeared through his wings and chest. Then, the dark sword gleamed as it went into the gem, making the final blow.

"NO! YOU CAN'T! MY POWER! IT… CAN'T… I AM THE SUPREME BAKUGAN! I AM NOT SUPPOSED TO LOSE! NOOOOOO!!!" Naga and Metal Sonic faded into nothingness. Masquerade landed gracefully on the ground, getting hugs and kisses from Dammy. Everyone cheered for the blonde. Zorano's lips quirked into a smirk before it vanished.

**Zorano's POV**

The humans cheered. It wasn't over, though. Not yet. The Silent Core was not destroyed along with Naga, since its energy still pulsed through the area, stronger than before. Nicole leaned against my leg, and the Infinity Core throbbed in sync with it's other half.

Then it emerged. The Silent Core pushed its way through the devastation, swiftly following the pull of the Infinity Core. Nicole looked straight forward and the others watched in horror and awe as the cores met… within the girl.

She didn't hit the floor this time, but the light was, if possible, more spectacular and blinding than before. I leaped back, joining the team, as Nicole was consumed in the bright, multicolored light. When it dimmed slightly, we all glanced back and found her suspended in the air, a circle of brightness surrounding her form. Alarm bells went off even before Wayvern chose to speak.

"This is impossible. Both cores have combined inside the girl," she explained to the humans who all stared, dumbstruck.

"That's not all," Gorem added. "The energy levels are spiking to inconceivable levels."

"In English, please!" Julie trilled.

"Julie, I think he means that the power created is too great for Nicole," Tails concluded. Skyress spoke this time.

"Tails is right. Power like this was never meant to be in the possession of a human, and it will overwhelm her if something isn't done."

"Overwhelm?" Kirby repeated.

"She will die, Kirby," Tigrerra explained. "We do not have much time." Dan interjected angrily, addressing everyone.

"Well, what do we do? Sit around and wait? Drago there has to be something we can do."

"I am unsure, Dan. It would be too dangerous to send another human in there—" The Dragonoid looked pointedly at Marucho "—but maybe if one of us went it would…" This was ridiculous. How could they sit around talking like that when Nicole had minutes, maybe even seconds, left? The light constantly dimmed and brightened, and the power fluctuated as her body was enveloped inside the shell. She looked content, but a human wasn't going to last long under that pressure.

It was now or never.

Before I could reconsider, I rushed forward, wings outstretched, ready to jump into certain death.

"Zorano, wait!" Dan called out. "You don't know what'll happen if you go in there!" He and Drago approached, preparing to wrench me back. I raised an eyebrow and forced myself ahead, shoving against the cores that tried to keep me away.

"The hell with it!"

**Oh, man! Nicole is in **_**trouble**_**! How will Zorano fare in rescuing her? Find out in the epilogue!**

*** The Kamikaze Banana thing was totally Kazo's idea. If you laughed, thank him. If you thought it was stupid, don't blame me.**


	64. Epilogue

**Here you go, my loyal readers! The Epilogue/Thank You/Disclaimer!! It's hard to believe it's been a little over a year since I started this. Okay, enough reminiscing. It's time for the final Review Response of this story!!**

**Pikana: I'm glad you liked that!**

**alxkend: Yep… Naga's gone… for a while.**

**brave kid: You almost feel sorry for the demented dragon? That's a laugh!**

**Zorano's POV**

Jumping straight into the core vortex probably wasn't the smartest move I've made. Drastic times, however, call for drastic measures. Of course, it was no picnic. Forcing your way through the perfect balance of negative and positive energy was harder than you might imagine. If one core was powerful, then imagine two of them merging.

See what I mean?

I'm not sure what I expected when I finally got into the middle. Maybe to spontaneously combust. Or maybe to just fall unconscious like Nicole was. I certainly wasn't anticipating to just stand there next to her body.

Strangely, when I looked out toward the others, I only saw perfection. It seemed as if the entire battle hadn't happened. The sun in the clear, azure sky glittered above the ocean, and the town appeared completely repaired. It wasn't like that in reality, and I reached for the girl's arm to drag her out by force.

The moment I touched her skin a feeling of nausea shot through me, and I shut my eyes against it. When I opened them again, I wasn't in the orb looking out anymore. I'd been transported to another perfect scene.

It was a meadow framed by oaks and teeming with life. The bright sunlight rained down and drenched every creature in sight, including a girl. She sat with her back to me staring off at the horizon.

"Zorano?" she asked quietly, turning to face me with a smile. She patted the grass next to her, signaling for me to join her. Hesitantly, I approached and sat next to this calm version of Nicole. Ever since this whole mess had started, she'd been constantly anxious. It's not like there were any moments of peace, anyway.

We sat in silence for a moment, Nicole gazing at something in the distance, and me staring at her. She looked different somehow. Perhaps it was the way her brow was smooth, instead of furrowed in confusion or fear. Or it could've been the slight curve of her lips. The tense stillness unnecessarily drew itself out before she spoke again.

"You know, it's a lot different here than out there. There's harmony, and everything feels right." She sighed contentedly.

"Yes, you're right," I agreed, sensing the easygoingness of the place. Then a thought struck me. "Wait, does that mean that you know what's going on?" It came out sounding more accusatory than I had planned. Nicole didn't flinch, like she would have normally.

"I know perfectly well what's going on. The two cores are within me."

"You're also aware that if we don't something, you'll die, right?" I asked pointedly. She shrugged, hinting to me that it didn't bother her either way. "Nicole!" I yelled. "This isn't about you. I'm in here, too, and who knows if I'll make it out alive." She glanced impassively at me. "And what about Earth and Vestroia? Are you going to let them collapse on each other?"

"Did something Marucho said actually get through to you?" she questioned, grinning innocently. Little smart-ass. A little peace and suddenly she thinks she can win an argument against me? Hell no.

Jumping to my feet, I picked her up by the tops of her arms and suspended her above the ground. Her dark eyes narrowed, her lips pressed together into a thin line.

"Listen closely, Nicole," I whispered menacingly. "For one, I don't care what twisted wonderland this is because the outside world could easily mimic if the core was in its rightful place. And for two, I willingly entered the cores to save you."

I dropped her, and she landed with a thud. I expanded my wings and beat them once before I was airborne. If Nicole wasn't coming then I had to get myself out of here. I'd made it miles away from her when the sky morphed from a crystalline blue to a midnight black. As the forest below was swallowed by darkness, I pressed forward, searching for an exit. Then I was falling, grasping at invisible hands, until I hit rock bottom.

---

**Nicole's POV**

My mind and body felt disconnected, and I couldn't find the strength to sit up. Oddly, though, I felt free, as if a weight had been lifted off my shoulders. Slowly, thoughts straightened themselves out, and I opened my eyes. The sky churned in unnatural colors, obviously a sign that things weren't right yet.

A pair of blue eyes appeared over me, and I recognized Marucho. He lifted me to my feet, and I noticed that none of them spoke.

"What's going on?" I asked. "The cores—"

"They are in my possession now, Nicole. Thank you for holding on to them," Drago interrupted, and I sighed, relieved. Sure enough, a shiny diamond was centered on his body, presumably to hold them.

That explained why I felt so calm before. I didn't have them.

I'd survived.

I clearly remembered the blunt arguments Zorano had used to convince me. She'd saved me from giving in to my selfish desires.

"Where's Zorano?" Dan looked troubled as he approached and placed her sphere in my cupped hands.

"She hasn't said a thing since she got out of there." I examined her closed form.

"Zorano?" I prompted. No response. This wasn't happening. "Zorano!?" The Darkus Bakugan whirled around to turn her back on me. Reassured, I smiled a bit. "Zorano, I'm sorry. I was being stubborn, even though I knew you were right. Thank you for helping me… again." Silence greeted my apology for the first few seconds.

"You're such an idiot sometimes, you know?" she mentioned facetiously as she turned and hopped on my shoulder.

"I know." I agreed, everyone else chuckling at the exchange. I studied the docks, well, what remained of the docks. It was chaos: upturned pavement, crates tossed into the sea, the tide crawling up a concrete shore. The only remnant of Naga's existence was a scorch mark seared into the cement. If only everyone had a happy ending…

I knew what James's fate had been. I didn't have to see his lifeless body resting beside the charred evidence to realize it.

Just desserts, I suppose. For faking his death, his punishment was actual death. An eye for an eye. I approached his body and took a seat beside it. The sneer had been replaced with the beginnings of a serene smile. His blonde hair fell into his eyes, and I gently pushed his fringe to the side. The jade eyes were closed, and I almost lifted an eyelid to see them once more, but Zorano held me back.

"Let's go," she suggested, voice strangely congested. "We're not done yet." I drifted back toward the others who had apologies ready on their tongues.

"Don't," I stated numbly.

"We don't need your pity," Zorano added harshly.

"We?" I repeated disbelievingly.

"Yes, _we_," Zorano reiterated, slighted. Dan laughed and soon everyone joined in. It seemed as if we were comic relief now.

"Yay, now we can celebrate! We should have a huge party down at Marucho's place. We'll invite everyone and—" Julie began.

"Julie, it's not over yet," Gorem interrupted.

"Huh? What do you mean, Gorem?" Dan asked that time. Drago sighed.

"Remember when I said we couldn't stop Vestroia from colliding? That we would need to alter the collision so that they connected harmlessly?" Apollonir asked. Dan nodded.

"I'm afraid that was only a theory. We have to drop the cores back in the center. Once we do, we have no idea what will happen next. We may be separated as before," Exedra finished.

"W-What?!" Dan yelled. "How can you say that you might not be able to come back!?" His eyes glistened, and he let a few tears escape. Everyone else copied the expression of anger and sadness on Dan's face. So this was what she meant. Zorano said nothing as she watched parents comfort their children, and I wondered what mine were up to. I rubbed the back of my hand against my eyes, brushing tears away.

Another hand took mine gently, and I closed my fingers around it. Looking up, I saw his sapphire eyes fixed on his two Bakugan before him. They shined as brightly as the sun.

It'd be alright.

---

"So I guess this is it?" I asked her, sitting on a tall, grassy field overlooking the entire city. The rest of the Brawlers had each picked a spot to say goodbye. This was most likely the end of the line. Each one shared a last heartfelt moment with their partners because, after this, we'd probably never see them again. Zorano floated in front of me in her spherical form, ebony wings flapping reflexively.

"Yep, this is where we part ways… maybe." I'd never pictured myself a Brawler, playing the game and actually liking it. I also hadn't imagined that a Bakugan as… difficult —let's put it that way- as Zorano would be my partner.

We were opposites, clashing in every form and aspect possible. She and James shared the perfect partnership, and when we were forced together, teamwork seemed unfeasible. Yet at the end of the road, there wasn't anyone else that I would've shared this experience with.

"I just wanted to say—"

"That I'm awesome. Deep down you really love me. You couldn't have done it without me. Don't worry, I know, Nicole," she bragged for me, and I rolled my eyes at the smirk I heard in her voice.

"What I was going to say was that you treated me like crap, didn't care one bit about me, and worst of all, you were unbelievably frank about everything to the point where I felt like crying." She stayed silent, and I continued. "But you _are_ awesome, Zorano, and I didn't realize it until a few hours ago. You forced me to quit being pathetic, and without your help, I don't think I could've stayed sane through it all. Thank you."

"And?" she encouraged, nudging my hand with a wing. I huffed, rolling my eyes dramatically.

"And I suppose, I do love you a little bit." I added, poking her playfully.

"That's better," she conceded. "Since it's my turn to pour my heart out, I'd just like to say that you're not as bad a person as I made you out to be." Zorano landed on the ground next to me.

"That's it?" I asked incredulously. "I give a gut-wrenching speech, and that's all you have to say back?"

"Well, there is one more thing," she said. "Most of the Bakugan that entered your world can't say they've had two partners. I can. And out of you and James, I think I prefer you." That was all I was getting out of her, apparently. For Zorano, it was emotional enough, and I beamed in response. "Oh, there was something I wanted to ask you."

"Yes?"

"What exactly did the rich kid tell you when we were flying?" she questioned brazenly. I laughed.

"It was nothing really." She snorted skeptically. "He just reminded me that you were watching."

---

At some point later that day, I shot her into Vestroia for the fourth time. Immediately, the effects of the core were seen. The sky brightened and the edginess vanished, leaving behind only the memories we'd created alongside the Bakugan. As far as I know, Zorano didn't cry, although I can't say the same about myself.

I'd know what would happen in just a few minutes. I never had gotten to know the Smashers as much as the others. However, it seemed that some higher force had plans to let me. The shortly normal sky swirled violently with colors.

The large portal to Vestroia burst into existence, and our friends spilled out. Drago clacked onto the ground. I was in a state of relief, but also panic. What the heck was happening!?

"Drago! What happened?!" Dan yelled as he picked up his friend.

"Nngh, the-the cores! We can't control them! Vestroia's collapsing out of control!" Drago replied, worry present in his voice. The said orbs shot back into Drago's form. Marucho, for some reason, was the calmest of us. He sent a look to Julie and Dan.

"Well, you two, it looks like Dr. Michael's theory was right. You ready?" Dan and Julie nodded before yelling.

"Pyrus/Aquos/Subterra!" The symbols shone, and I began to feel the planet shake. I could see clearly on a fixed gigantic television that the planet was rising as the core expanded, leaving a gaping hole in the ocean that I couldn't see otherwise. I had to laugh as the water stood still, not even going to fall off and into the core of the planet.

"Wow…" I laughed. "Who knew three kids could do that?" Zorano huffed. Jealous? Maybe. I watched as Runo, Shun, and Masquerade activated their symbols. A purple sphere appeared in the gap, and I saw in my mind that Vestroia was spinning around into a green ring. My breath hitched as the center exploded, and the ring became a solid circle that was sucked into the portal.

I could tell that the Smashers were watching in total awe as the green shape filled the gap. The light faded, and a large, super continent was formed on our planet.

"Welcome to Earth… New Vestroia," I heard Zorano say. I smiled. Things were alright again. Dan had a grin on his face as he held Drago.

"Ready, Drago? Let's unite these worlds!" Drago shot a beam into the sky, and more portals opened up. Our planet grew. World after world merged with ours, and the sky began to clear. Everything was right in the world.

And now, we had some friends that wouldn't have to leave any time soon. We then had to go through some lame speech because Master Hand, who was supposedly the creator of the world —now country- known as Smash World, wanted to welcome Speedy, Amy, Tails, and Chip into the group.

We met back at the tower and gave a cheer for saving the world. I had to laugh when Zorano joined in the shout. Of course, I was uncharacteristically happy as well.

---

Days later I attended James' burial. Again. His parents knew nothing of it. He was laid to rest in a quiet cemetery in the states. It sparkled with new life while I mourned an old one. Tulips cheerfully swayed in the breeze, growing against the odds. I stared at his unmarked tombstone, wondering how it would've turned out had he lived the first time around.

I wouldn't be here, noticing how the tombstone eroded slightly or how the moss edged over the entire thing. I wouldn't have bonded with Zorano, who occupied my shoulder every day. I wouldn't have reached out to Marucho, who gave me a chance.

Sometimes, I feel wronged, as if James didn't deserve what had happened to him. But if there is something to karma, fate, destiny, whatever you want to call it, this adventure worked out. And life will go on in the same manner, fixing itself at every turn. After that episode, I couldn't see or sense the future anymore, but I that doesn't mean I can't be sure about it.

Now more than ever I'm positive that everything happens for a reason, even if we don't realize or appreciate it. And the only thing to do is learn from it, and let others teach you.

**So? How was it? Was it a decent enough epilogue? Okay, now get ready for the disclaimer!**

**I do not own Sonic the Hedgehog or anything related to the franchise. I do own Speedy the Hedgehog, Super Speedy, and Dark Hyper Sonic.**

**The Smashers belong to the companies that made them.**

**Bakugan belongs to TMS Entertainment and Nelvana. However, I do own Nicole Adams and Zorano. Nicole and Zorano were based from Nicole and Zora, who are owned by cocoacharm15. I also own the temporary evolutions of the other Bakugan and their Ability Cards.**

**I do not own Dammy Hyte. However, I do own Solero and his Ability Cards!**

**I also own the whole plot of this story!**

**Now, I'd like to point out right here and now that I am not a fan of any pairing here. These are my reasons for each:**

**Dan x Runo: It's canon, duh.**

**Billy x Julie: It's canon.**

**Chan-Lee x Joe: It's canon as well.**

**Shun x Alice: It's the most popular pairing for Alice in FanFiction.**

**Dammy x Masquerade: I highly doubt that CloneGirl would appreciate it if her character was paired with someone else.**

**Marucho x Nicole: Hello! The poor guy deserves a pairing!**

**Amy x Speedy: I kinda figured that Amy was a bit too good for Sonic.**

**Thank you to alxkend, Kazo the Hedgehog, PEJP Bengtzone, and others for supplying me with ideas.**

**And also, thank you to all of you fantastic readers who took the time to check this out!**

**If you have any questions about the story or any ideas for future stories, feel free to contact me via a private message. Just go to my profile for a list of the stories that will come to you in the future.**

**Now, while you wait for the first chapter of the sequel, feel free to review any other chapters of this story. I mean, if you want.**

**See you next time! Be sure to watch for Ninja Madness!**


End file.
